Things To Do in Brighton

Mall rats head for Churchill Square, Brighton's spacious shopping center, which is home to major chain stores. The shopping center runs from Western Road to North Street (about 3km/2 miles long) and offers many inexpensive shops and stalls with great buys on everything from antiques to woolens. On Saturdays, there are many more antiques exhibits and sidewalk stalls. The mall is open Monday to Wednesday 9am to 6pm, Friday and Saturday 9am to 7pm, and Sunday 11am to 5pm.

Regent Arcade, which is located between East Street, Bartholomew Square, and Market Street, sells artwork, jewelry, and other gift items, as well as high-fashion clothing.

Everyone raves about the shopping on the Lanes. The Lanes are a close-knit section of alleyways off North Street in Brighton's Old Town; many of the present shops were formerly fishers' cottages. The shopping is mostly for tourists, and while you may fall for a few photo ops, you'll find that the nearby North Laine -- between the Lanes and the train station -- is the area for up-and-coming talent and for alternative retail. Just wander along a street called Kensington Gardens to get the whole effect. Innumerable shops are located in the Lanes that carry antique books and jewelry, and many boutiques are found in converted backyards on Duke Lane just off Ship Street. In the center of the Lanes is Brighton Square, which is ideal for relaxing or people-watching near the fountain on one of the benches or from a cafe-bar.

Bargain hunters head for the Kemptown Flea Market, 31A Upper James St., Monday to Saturday 9:30am to 5:30pm and Sunday 10:30am to 5pm. A more famous flea market is held in the parking lot of the train station, but only on Sunday 6am to 2pm.

Framework, 26 Kensington Gardens (tel. 01273/818585), has old photographs of the local area, illustrations, prints, and a complete framing service.

In addition to its malls and shopping complexes, Brighton also abounds in specialty shops. One of our favorites is the finest gift shop in Brighton, the Pavilion Shop, 4-5 Pavilion Buildings, Brighton (tel. 01273/292798), next to the Royal Pavilion. Here you can purchase gift and home-furnishing items in the style of design schools that created the look (from Regency to Victorian). Books, jams, needlepoint kits, notebooks, pencils, stencil kits, and other souvenirs are also available. Latest British designers for women are showcased at a fashionable store, Pussy, 3A Kensington Gardens (tel. 01273/604861).

Brighton offers lots of entertainment options. You can find out what's happening by looking for What's On, a single sheet of weekly events posted throughout the town.

One theater offers drama throughout the year: the Theatre Royal, New Road (tel. 08700/606650), with pre-London shows. Bigger concerts are held at Brighton Centre, Kings Road (tel. 01273/290131; www.brightoncentre.co.uk), a 5,000-seat facility featuring mainly pop-music shows.

Nightclubs also abound. Cover charges range from free admission (most often on early or midweek nights) to £10, so call the clubs to find out about admission fees and updates in their nightly schedules, which often vary from week to week or season to season.

Audio, 10 Marine Parade (tel. 01273/606906; www.audiobrighton.com), home to both gay and straight dancers, has one floor for dancing and offers different music styles on different nights of the week on the second floor.

The hot, hot club on West Street is Oceana Brighton (tel. 01273/732627), a new multiroom complex and the first nightclub in the area to offer an early evening bar. There are three different venues here under one roof: the Deep Bar, the New York Disco, and the Reykjavik Icehouse. There's disco dancing on Europe's largest illuminated dance floor. Expect to pay a cover of £10, but this could vary depending on the night.

For a change of pace, Casablanca, Middle Street (tel. 01273/321817), features jazz with an international flavor.

Pubs are a good place to kick off an evening, especially the Colonnade Bar, New Road (tel. 01273/328728), serving drinks for over 100 years. The pub gets a lot of theater business because of its proximity to the Theatre Royal. Cricketers, Black Lion Street (tel. 01273/329472; www.goldenliongroup.co.uk), is worth a stop because it's Brighton's oldest pub, parts of which date from 1549. Drinking lures patrons to Fortune of War, 157 King's Rd. (tel. 01273/205065).