00:00People do love to be beside the sea, especially right here in Herne Bay. The pier here has
00:07recently been named the best seaside experience in the whole of the UK. Defeating other favourites
00:14from Wims in Scotland all the way to the Shell Grotto in Margate, Herne Bay Pier has come
00:20out on top.
00:21We were really so excited. It was great. It was a great achievement and it was a pat on
00:28the back to everybody on the pier that helps run us. So all of the trustees, all of the
00:33members, a myriad of volunteers who will work really hard for us.
00:38The winner of the Bucket and Spade Award was decided on by a public vote and there were
00:44lots of positive reviews.
00:46When they did their little tick to vote for us, they were also encouraged to write a little
00:51snippet, a little sentence or two about what the pier meant to them. And there were about
00:57600 comments and reading them was absolutely heartwarming. I was almost in tears.
01:02Although it's a bit quieter here today, Herne Bay Pier can see around 8,000 visitors in just
01:08one day during the summer months. But what do the locals and regulars here think about their
01:14award-winning pier?
01:15I can really see there's been an awful lot of money invested and I will say a lot of
01:20community pulling together to make it a special place. It's really lovely.
01:27I really love all the different stalls that are here now. There's really good quality food,
01:31lovely coffee and if you like real ale, that craft ale bar is lovely.
01:36There's some nice eateries there and there's a nice little bar. It's a friendly environment.
01:40I highly recommend it.
01:42Herne Bay Pier was also the runner-up in the Pier of the Year awards a few months ago.
01:47So what do these awards mean for the wider Herne Bay community?
01:51I think it's going to be hugely good for Herne Bay as a whole. We do struggle a little bit.
01:59We're surrounded by a lot of very popular resorts and we're not always top of the list,
02:05but I think we're going to make it. We're getting there.
02:07As this proud team are now getting ready for the colder months,
02:11they're excited to be welcoming more visitors to the best seaside experience in the UK soon.
02:17Justine Larta for KMTV in Herne Bay.
