A separate town to Rye itself, Rye Harbour is where the River Rother spills into the sea.

The nature reserve here, a Site of Special Scientific Interest, consists of more than a thousand acres of shingle, saltmarsh, salty lagoons and reedbeds. It’s best-known for its breeding birdlife, including roseate tern, ringed plover, lapwing and redshank, but the area is great for a walk at any time of year – in early summer, coastal plants such as sea pea bring lots of colour.

A network of footpaths cross the reserve; from here you can walk all the way down to Winchelsea Beach, and back into Rye itself.