Heritage Seaside Beaches

Historic sea-bathing resorts where the architecture and habits of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries survive on the front: piers, bathing cabins, grand hotels, boardwalks and casinos. What survives in this world is an idea of the seaside from a specific period — piers, bathing cabins, boardwalks, casinos and grand hotels — and in most cases the beach itself is secondary to it. Several of these resorts have a short and social season and stand largely empty for the rest of the year, which is unusual to see at this scale. Water at these resorts is usually cold, the architecture is usually protected, and the register treats both as the point rather than as a drawback. Out of season these fronts are bleak, empty and arguably at their best.