The Best Family-Friendly Hotels in Brighton

The embodiment of Renaissance-style charm, this grande dame has lured guests back time and again with its luxurious Farrow & Ball-splashed rooms, bowler-hatted doormen and plum seafront location just steps from The Brighton Centre and i360 Viewing Tower. Pamper yourself with a bee-venom facial by royal therapist Deborah Mitchell while your other half takes the kids to nearby Regency Square with a made-to-order picnic box.

This Grade I-listed hotel is set in one of the Regency-era buildings ringing the immaculate Brunswick Square. Brighton Beach Bandstand and the Old Market performing arts centre are within walking distance. Pick from a family or quad suite – which both sleep four – and plan your Brighton adventure using the high-speed wifi. The breakfast lounge caters for vegetarians and vegans and has views over the sea.

This 10-roomed Georgian townhouse sits on the corner of Kemptown’s New Steine square, a stone’s throw from the Sea Life Centre and Palace Pier. Thoughtful touches including mini-fridges, coffee machines and binoculars for ship-spotting fill the bright, vanilla-hued rooms. Call upon manager David if you want custom extras such as flowers or champagne – and don’t miss the sourdough toast with smashed avocado for breakfast.

With reclaimed tea chests for bedside tables, groovy copper tubs and retro Roberts radios, this member of the Artist Residence boutique group brims with bohemian charm. Benefits include a ping-pong table in the basement, insider recommendations from staff and a rotating 14-course tasting menu at The Set, which often incorporates delicacies such as caviar and Wagyu beef. The hotel looks down Regency Square to the i360 viewing tower, with the Brighton Centre a short hop away.

Moments from the beach, the YHA edges the picnic-friendly Old Steine gardens. Facilities include a games area with ping-pong and table football, and a lobby stuffed with helpful information on tours, events and excursions such as sea kayaking. Expect mountains of bacon, eggs, croissants and fresh fruit for breakfast, and there’s a self-catering kitchen for fixing up other meals. While the decor is largely modern, chandeliers and bay windows evoke former Regency-era charm.

All you need is love – and strawberries, according to the Beatles-themed flourishes in this fun hotel on New Steine in Kemptown. Fans of the Fab Four will love the retro trappings and cushions embroidered with “I Wanna Hold Your Hand”. There’s no breakfast, but local cafe Little Miss Piggies supplies “brunch in a bed” boxes. Sea Life Brighton, Beach Flint Grotto and Palace Pier are all within a five-minute walk.

A shock of green in a sea of city-centre cream, Selina stands out with its foliage-filled rooms, velvety viridian headboards and reclaimed wooden furnishings. Make use of a full schedule of wellness activities including in-room yoga before tucking into a pizza at the blush-hued Old Pier eatery. If you need to sneak off to check your emails, the co-working space covers your needs. Opposite the hotel is the quirky Upside-Down House; and beyond that, the haunting shell of the old West Pier.

Set among the labyrinthine alleys of The Lanes, this apartment complex is within five minutes’ walk of the Pier, Pavilion and Theatre Royal. Interiors have a home-away-from-home feel with an oven, microwave, fridge freezer and ironing facilities all provided, plus pops of colour from cityscape prints and embroidered cushions. Families should opt for a two-bedroom apartment, decently sized at 96sqm (1,033sqft).