Why Brighton, Why This Blog

Brighton gets a lot of coverage, usually around Pride, the Fringe, or whatever food trend has landed on the Lanes this season. What it gets less of is a straightforward, honest account of what it’s actually like to live here, visit here, or consider moving here, written by someone who has done all three. Minus the moving, I never left.

I started this blog because I kept having the same conversations. Friends visiting from elsewhere asking where to eat, what to do with kids, whether the Old Steine is worth a stop, how to get to Lewes from the station. People considering relocating, wanting a sense of the place beyond the estate agent blurb. I was giving the same recommendations over and over and eventually decided to write them down properly.

The blog is called Brighton Up Your Day, and the name is deliberate. This is not a complaints forum. Brighton has genuine problems, every city does, but that’s not what this site is for. This is a resource for people who want to get something good out of the city, not a running commentary on what’s going wrong with it.

What You’ll Find Here

The site covers the parts of Brighton worth knowing about:

• Things to do, indoor and outdoor, free and paid, for locals and visitors alike
• Eating and drinking, restaurants, cafés, bars, independent spots worth your time
• Nightlife, what’s on, what to expect, where to go depending on what you’re after
• History and culture, the bits that give the city its character
• Local services and professionals, useful for residents navigating the area
• Travel and transport, getting around Brighton and getting to it
• Education and community, schools, local initiatives, the civic stuff that shapes daily life
• Politics and community, covered where it’s relevant and constructive

I won’t cover negative angles, controversies for their own sake, or anything designed to drag the city down. There’s enough of that elsewhere.

How I Write

I’m not a journalist and I don’t claim to be. I’m self-taught and I write from direct experience. If I recommend a restaurant, I’ve eaten there. If I describe a walk, I’ve done it. I try to be specific where it counts and honest about gaps in my knowledge. When something has changed since my last visit, I’ll say so. I update pages when they go out of date rather than leaving old information to mislead people.

Some pages on this site contain affiliate links. These help keep the site running at no additional cost to you. I only link to things I’d recommend anyway.

Last updated: March 2026