Getting Around Eastbourne
Eastbourne is a compact seaside resort, and most of what a visitor wants to see — the Victorian seafront, the pier, the theatre and the town centre — sits within easy reach of the main railway station on Terminus Road. That makes getting around straightforward: you can walk much of the centre, and fall back on buses or taxis for the rest.
Arriving by Train
Southern Railway is the principal train company serving Eastbourne. The town's main station is Eastbourne Train Station (EBN) on Terminus Road, right in the town centre. There is a taxi rank and a pick-up/drop-off point outside the station, and taxis are usually waiting there; if not, a taxi freephone is available through another exit.
There is a second station, Hampden Park (HMD) on Station Approach. For most attractions and hotels it is easier to travel into Eastbourne station and continue from there, but Hampden Park is the better choice if you are heading to Willingdon, Hampden Park or Langney.
Eastbourne is linked by train to the west with Brighton, and to the east with Bexhill, Hastings and Ashford International (for Eurostar services to France and Belgium). There is also a direct line to London, calling at Clapham Junction, East Croydon and London Victoria. Trains also run from Bedford via St Pancras and Gatwick Airport into Brighton; that train does not reach Eastbourne, so you change at Haywards Heath or Brighton for a separate service.
Fare and timetable information is available from the Southern Railway website or National Rail Enquiries.
Buses
Services within the Eastbourne borough are mainly operated by Stagecoach Buses Ltd, the successor to the company that was the world's first municipal bus operator. Stagecoach also runs country services to Tunbridge Wells, Heathfield, Uckfield, Willingdon, Polegate, Pevensey Bay, Hailsham, Bexhill and Hastings.
Eastbourne's art deco bus station closed some years ago, but almost all services now stop in a buses-only area of the main shopping precinct at Terminus Road, near the railway station. There is no formal bus office in the town centre, but information and timetables are posted at all stops in the central area, and limited bus information is available from the Tourist Information Office in Cornfield Road.
Hailsham, Pevensey Bay, Polegate and Willingdon are included in the local Eastbourne fare zonal system. Within that zone there is an unlimited day rover ticket, and a weekly ticket is available from the driver. Town services and out-of-town services are numbered separately, so check the route number for your destination before boarding.
Brighton is served by Brighton and Hove Buses, which offer an all-day ticket that includes the return journey between the two towns and unlimited travel in Brighton and Hove; it is cheaper if purchased in advance online. If you also want to use local services in Eastbourne and travel to Brighton with unlimited travel, an Explorer ticket bought on a Stagecoach bus gives total unlimited travel on most services in Kent and Sussex for one day, including Stagecoach, Arriva and Brighton & Hove. The same Explorer ticket costs more if bought on a Brighton and Hove bus, so buying from Stagecoach is better value.
Taxis
"Black cabs" are rarely seen on Eastbourne's streets, but taxis licensed by the local authority are readily available at all times from ranks on either side of the railway station. The two main taxi firms in Eastbourne are 720 Taxis and 726 Taxis, both described as reliable; 746746 Taxis (Call a Cab Ltd) also operates in the town.
Walking
Because the main station, the shopping precinct and the seafront are all close together in the town centre, walking is the simplest way to cover the core of Eastbourne. The Tourist Information Office on Cornfield Road is a short walk from the station: if walking along Terminus Road from the station, turn right just before the start of the pedestrianised section, and the office is on the right.
Getting In from the Airport
If you arrive at Gatwick Airport, you can catch a Southern train to Eastbourne — it is the same train as the London Victoria–Eastbourne service — with journey times of about 50 minutes to an hour.
By Car
The main roads into Eastbourne are the A27, which runs west to Brighton, and the A259, which heads east to Hastings. The A22 (joining the A27) goes north towards London.