Cool strides on the Essex coast

At 350 miles, the Essex coastline is renowned for its natural beauty, diverse habitats and rich wildlife – but that is far from being the full story. 

Bustling seaside towns, large and small, picture-postcard villages with perfect pubs where weary walkers can kick back and relax for a while, plus some of the freshest fish and shellfish in the country – Essex is just waiting to be explored on foot! 

In April, a four day spring festival takes place but this is the prelude to the main Saltmarsh Coast Walking Festival held between 26 September and 5 October 2025.  

Book your free place for this year's Festival, the biggest yet, with 40 guided walks to choose from over the ten days. There'll be walks to suit all ages and abilities, from leisurely strolls to more challenging hikes, covering the beautiful coast and countryside of the Maldon District. Importantly, all walks include a welcoming venue for lunch and refreshments.  

Aside from the walking festival, Essex offers superb walking year round. The county encompasses a 300-mile stretch of the King Charles III England Coast Path and includes around 40 islands – more than any other English county. 

Arguably the best-known of these is Mersea Island, accessed via the Strood, a causeway which is said to have been first built in the 7th Century. It has been greatly improved since, but it is still a causeway, and at the twice-daily high tides the island is essentially cut off from the mainland. 

Visit Essex has put together a 13.4-mile Magical Mersea trail which offers the chance to see porpoises and migrating ospreys in spring, or red squirrels all year round and the chance to enjoy everything from local caught oysters to vineyard wine. 

Farther south, the Burnham-on-Crouch circular walk (5.5 miles) features two distinct bird-spotting habitats, with extensive grassland and an estuarine environment attracting waders, seabirds and egrets. 

A short distance to the northwest of Burnham, the village of Althorne is the focus for a five-mile circular walk taking in riverside relaxation. Two vineyards, Clayhill and Crouch Ridge lie on the slopes between Althorne and Latchingdon, the ideal conditions for producing their award-winning wines, so well worth making a detour!

No coastal walk can be complete without a healthy dose of sun, sea and sand, and Essex has all three in abundance. 

Essex is recognised as one of the sunniest regions of the UK, with Walton-on-the-Naze being particularly blessed, with an average of more than 1,800 hours of sunshine per year.  

Walton offers the Crag Walk, which is both short and relatively easy. Starting point is the Naze Tower, an 18th Century Hanoverian construction atop the Crag, an impressive headland perfect for spotting migrating birds. For an even better view, climb to the top of the tower, eight floors and 86 feet up!  There’s an art gallery, a museum and welcome tea room.  The walk then continues to the Crag – a massive sea defence - and then on to the town of Walton itself.  

Essex’s Sunshine Coast, the stretch between Frinton-on-Sea and Jaywick, offers an easy to moderate 6.5-mile traffic-free, beachside walk. It takes in the pretty seaside town of Holland-on-Sea before heading into the hustle and bustle of Clacton, and on to the quieter beaches of Jaywick. 

Bringing your dog? The Saltmarsh Coast from Maldon to Burnham-on-Crouch offers beautiful walks along the sea wall.  The Naze, mentioned earlier, is also dog-friendly, stroll along the coastal path keeping an eye out of the amazing wildlife, seals, birds and butterflies, all in abundance.   

To really wear your pup out, take the circular Paglesham Sea Wall walk. This two hour circular walk takes in farmland and the village of Paglesham, and best of all, features lead-free stretches.

In a recent Visit Essex survey to find the icons of Essex, the public’s number one choice was Southend Pier, with Topsail Charters coming second. 

The pier is 1.33 miles long, so take a stroll along the world’s longest pleasure pier and enjoy plenty of distractions along the way. 

For history buffs, the Harwich Maritime Walking Trail is an absolute must. Main attractions include the Harwich Redoubt Fort, built in 1808 as a defence against a potential Napoleonic invasion; the Maritime Museum, housed in a disused lighthouse dating back to 1818; and the High Lighthouse, built to guide vessels into Harwich Harbour and now offering stunning views from its summit 90-feet above ground level.    

More recently, if you watched The Essex Serpent Apple TV mini-series in 2022, you’ll have caught sight of market town Maldon, its main setting, with the saltmarshes of the Blackwater Estuary and Tollesbury providing gorgeous backdrops.  Create your own walk of fame retracing the character’s steps in these settings and also Cudmore Grove Country Park on Mersea Island and picturesque Brightlingsea Harbour.