North and South: new commuter homes in Hythe and Herne Bay on either side of the Kent coast
Hythe is one of the five historic Cinque Ports, occupying a key strategic location between Hastings and Dover, where a string of fortified Martello towers were built as a defence against invasion by Napoleon.
Three of the towers survive at Hythe, and though the once-busy harbour has disappeared due to silting, the town’s Royal Military Canal, also built to rebuff French armies, survives and gives the town its distinctive character.
Martello Lakes, a 1,000-home new waterside neighbourhood, is being built on the site of old quarries on the fringe of the town.
Houses cost from £264,995. Call 0844 8549936.
Herne Bay, between Whitstable and Reculver on the so-called “Kent Riviera”, is regaining some of the cachet it enjoyed during its Victorian heyday when it was a fashionable resort, home to the world’s first free-standing clock tower and the UK’s longest pleasure pier.
Much of the town’s 19th-century seafront architecture is intact, plus it has a two-mile shingle Blue Flag beach, while council-sponsored regeneration is helping to revive the town’s image.
Five minutes’ walk from the harbour and the town centre’s vintage tea rooms and Art Deco bandstand is The Elements, a new development of Georgian-style townhouses and apartments.
Prices start at £230,000 and Help to Buy is available. Call 0808 301 9529.
