Rye is such a revelation. In just two hours from London, you can step back in time to this picturesque town steeped in history. It’s coastal location has made for a colourful past with invasions, smuggling, floods and shipwrecks.
These days Rye is a quaint, charming and very dog friendly destination with independent shops, welcoming pubs, modern restaurants and hotels both old and new and it’s just a stone’s throw from the stunning beach at Camber Sands.
There’s more history than you can shake a stick with stories a-plenty of smuggling and timeless tales. We’re in Rye to catch up with friends so our exploring is mostly limited to shops, pubs and restaurants and of course, the beaches even though the weather tries it’s hardest to cramp our style!
Where We Stayed
There are a few dog friendly hotels in Rye but pawsonally when we’re travelling with Teddy, we usually find a whole home more convenient. We rented this homely little flat above the town cobblers – it was more than enough room for the 3 of us and had a cute little roof terrace. Too bad it wasn’t warm enough to take advantage of it!
Our friends stayed in a larger 3 bedroom Airbnb character property with a pretty little garden just a stone’s throw from our place. Parking is at a premium with such narrow, cobbled streets and neither of these properties had street parking. We parked in town at Rye Cattle Market car park for £2.50 per day (although it’s worth noting that the car park is closed on Thursdays for the town market.)
Where We Shopped
The independent shops in Rye are beautifully curated and for the most part, dog friendly. With everything from crafts to books to art and pet supplies – there really is something for everyone.
Just off Market Road, you’ll find Simply Rye – a delightful, independent, family-run gift shop with a great range of clothing, stationery, fragrance, jewellery, childrens’ gifts and a fabulous array of socks! Of course, it’s dog friendly too!
For quirky homewares, you’ll want to hotfoot it to Lola and Sidney which is an Aladdin’s cave of fun and unique items. The wares here are as bold and playful as the two house bunnies the shop is named after and your dog is welcome to browse with you.
Where We Played
It’s about a 10 minute drive to the stunning beach at Camber Sands. Dogs are welcome all year round and although there are some restrictions from 1 May to 30 September, there is still plenty of beach and lots of dunes for the pups to enjoy some furry freedom – even the cloudy conditions can’t cramp this dog’s style.
It’s not just the sandy beach that makes Camber a standout, it features one of the longest and purest dune systems on the South Coast and it’s the only one found in East Sussex. It’s definitely worth checking the tide table before you visit so that you can make the best use of the beach at low and high tide. When the tide comes in here, it comes in quick!
Where We Drank
With so many historic watering holes, one thing is for sure, you won’t go thirsty in Rye!
Mermaid Inn
This smuggler’s inn is as old as it is picturesque and is reputedly one of the most haunted inns in Britain! For that reason, I’m quite relieved that dogs are neither allowed in the bar or the restaurant and am more than happy to take a pew on the dog friendly patio.
The inn was first built around 1156, was rebuilt in 1420 and it’s still standing today. I pop inside to use the facilites and find sloping ceilings, creaking floorboards and a plethora of staircases. I’m not going to lie it all feels a bit spooky but it isn’t enough to put off a lot of famous folk. Over the years, the hotel has welcomed many famous faces from Johnny Depp to Judi Dench and Charlie Chaplin to Elizabeth I.
Fun fact, The Mermaid Inn is the only hotel in the citadel of Rye with on site parking. Side note: the seagulls in Rye are the biggest and noisiest I have ever encountered!
The Dragon Bar at The George In Rye
You’ll find this luxury hotel slap, bang in the middle of Rye’s beautiful cobbled High Street. The building dates back to 1575 but has been restored and has a very luxe feel with just the right balance of old and new.
Small well behaved dogs are welcome in the Snug in the Dragon bar – where you can also dine – and in the courtyards when the weather is fine. We try out the Snug when the weather is inclement and the courtyard when the sun decides to shine – both spots get our pups’ paws of approval. The hoomans really rate the Bloody Marys here!
Rye Waterworks Micropub
The Waterworks is the first micropub in East Sussex but it wasn’t always a pub. It was actually a pumphouse for 300 years, then in the 1890s it became a soup kitchen and now it’s a family business serving 8 local ales, 2 keg beers and no less than 12 local ciders plus wines, spirits and locally produced soft drinks.
Decorated with beer mats, fairy lights and nik naks, the pub is full of vintage treasure – almost everything you see inside is for sale, even the chairs and tables! It’s very dog friendly and even if you’re not feeling thirsty, you should definitely pop in for a look around!
Where We Ate
The standard of food in Rye is incredible and there are plenty of delicious dog friendly dining options.
Whitehouse Rye
Located in a listed building in the heart of the High Street, Whitehouse is a modern cafe, bakery, bed and breakfast and a wedding venue!
The cafe is dog friendly and there’s an all day menu that’s just the ticket whether you’re looking for brekkie, lunch or like us, brunch. The wood panelled dining room has a relaxed vibe and service is attentive and friendly.
David and I both choose the Omni, poached eggs, free range bacon, local pork sausage, smoky tomato and sourdough toast. It’s such a simple dish but it tastes exceptional – the bacon and sausage in particular are standouts. It’s so filling, we don’t eat again until dinner!
Sadly we are too full to take advantage of the delicious looking bakery which is open for coffee, cake and baked goods from 8.30am – 4.30pm daily.
Mermaid Street Cafe
Located at the end of Mermaid Street beneath the Old Borough Arms, you’ll find the Mermaid Street Cafe – just look for the ice cream window. There’s plenty of seating in the upstairs cafe, too bad the weather isn’t warm enough to enjoy the lovely roof terrace although Teddy doesn’t seem to mind.
The cafe has a delicious selection of cakes and is well known for it’s local crab baps but we pop in for some brekkie. Business is brisk and the menu is best described as English classic. David and I can’t wait to build our own breakfast baps – you can choose from a number of fillings and baps are priced upon the number of fillings you choose. We choose 3 – bacon, egg and hashbrown – a winning combination if I say so myself!
Service is relaxed and friendly and our pups receive a very warm welcome and even get some pats and cuddles. Next time we’ll come back for one of their famous cinnamon buns or enjoy an ice cream on the famous ice cream bench outside.
The Globe Inn Marsh Rye
Our friends have dined here before and are keen to go back to this cracker of a pub on the outskirts of town. This cute little clapperboard pub has a quirky seaside themed interior and prides itself on using the best local producers – so that food can be traced to the farm, field, boat or flock.
Food is served all day – there’s a breakfast menu, a Sunday menu and the ‘core’ menu made up of small plates, larger plates and ‘daily doings’ with a number of gluten free options. We start with some of the home made foccacia and olives because it looks too good to resist.
For mains, the boys choose the chicken parmy and the girls go for the Sussex steer beef burger – the mains are most pleasing. Service is warm and welcoming and there’s a really relaxed vibe.
60% of the tables here can be booked ahead, the remainder are reserved for walk ins. We’re super pleased we booked ahead because we would hate to miss out. Dogs are very welcome here. They even get a few treatos!
The Standard Inn
This 15th century inn in the heart of the citadel has a bar, a restaurant, rooms and a really relaxed vibe. There’s no reservations at the dog friendly Standard, you have to just turn up and hope for the best. Inside it’s very homey with carved wooden beams and a big fireplace and outside, there are cute covered booths, each with their own name and individual heaters.
We are lucky enough to score an outside booth and even though the place is packed, service is still efficient and friendly. The menu is varied and has something for everyone. I can’t go past the pie of the day which is Chicken and Leek but I am also desperate to try the hand cut fries. Our server lets us swap out the mash for the chips so I can literally have my chips and eat them.
The food here is of a high standard (especially the fries) and somehow we manage to save enough stomach space to try the Sticky Toffee Pudding with clotted cream. So, so good but so, so full!
So that’s a wrap on Rye! Would you sleep in a haunted hotel? And tell me, what 3 things would you have in your breakfast bap?
Linking up with Min for Wednesday Words and Whimsy
