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Best for Families
The Novium Museum on Tower Street is free for all visitors and the Roman bathhouse visible through the glass floor holds younger children's attention well. Priory Park has a free playground inside the city walls with a sand area for toddlers and a cafe on site. Chichester Canal runs 75-minute boat trips from the canal basin (from £7 for children, £10 for adults, spring to autumn; book at chichestercanal.org.uk or call 01243 771363). Flip Out at Chichester Gate (PO19 7BJ) has indoor trampolining, a Ninja obstacle course, and soft play; sessions from £9.50, open daily 10am to 7pm. The cathedral runs free family trails during school holidays. For teenagers, Chichester Westgate Skatepark sits behind the leisure centre on Via Ravenna (PO19 1RJ) and is free, concrete, and open all day.
Free Things to Do
The cathedral is free and runs lunchtime concerts every Tuesday at 1:10pm during term time; no tickets, no reserved seats, just turn up. The Novium Museum is free for all visitors. Walking the city walls takes around 40 minutes on a self-guided 1.5-mile circuit with interpretation panels at regular intervals. Priory Park and the canal towpath are both free. The farmers market runs on the first and third Friday of each month (9am to 2pm in East Street). For a longer free day, the Salterns Way cycle path connects the canal basin to Chichester Harbour at Birdham without touching a road.
Rainy Day Chichester
The Novium Museum is free and dry, with enough Roman history to fill a wet hour or two. Pallant House Gallery on North Pallant holds one of the best Modern British art collections outside London; adult admission £17, free for under-18s and jobseekers, open Monday to Saturday. Chichester Cinema at New Park (PO19 7XY) shows independent films from mid-morning; children from £3, adults from £11, with a cafe bar in the building. Flip Out at Chichester Gate is fully indoors; sessions from £9.50. The Festival Theatre box office is worth checking for matinees during the May-to-October season.
Food and Drink
The Pallant quarter, the grid of Georgian streets south of East Street, is where most of the city's better food is concentrated. Pallant House Gallery has a basement restaurant worth visiting even without seeing the collection. The canal basin area has a growing independent cafe scene. The farmers market on the first and third Friday of each month sells Sussex cheese, fresh fish, and seasonal vegetables direct from producers. The Festival of Chichester (mid-June to mid-July) includes food-focused events alongside its arts programme.
Combine Your Visit
Fishbourne Roman Palace is 5 minutes west (PO19 3QR), the largest Roman domestic building in Britain, with mosaic floors and a replanted Roman garden. Goodwood Estate is 10 minutes north (PO18 0PX) and worth timing around horse racing, the Festival of Speed, or the Sculpture Park. West Wittering beach is around 20 minutes south on a quiet day; the car park fills by 10am on summer weekends. Bosham village is 10 minutes west and has a working harbour, Saxon church, and a waterfront pub. Petworth and the Weald and Downland Museum are each around 25 minutes.
The Chichester Pallant Quarter
The streets south of East Street form the Pallant quarter, the oldest residential area in Chichester. Georgian townhouses now house Pallant House Gallery, independent restaurants, wine bars, and some of the city's best food. North Pallant, South Pallant, East Pallant and West Pallant radiate from a central cross, echoing the larger city street plan. It is the best area for an evening meal or a leisurely weekend brunch.
Chichester Harbour and the Coast
Chichester Harbour is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty stretching south from the city to the Solent. The harbour villages of Bosham, Itchenor and Dell Quay offer waterfront pubs, sailing, and seal-spotting boat trips. West Wittering beach, 7 miles south of the city centre, is one of the best sandy beaches on the south coast. The Salterns Way cycle path links Chichester to the harbour via a flat, traffic-free route through Donnington.
Things to do in Chichester
Chichester Cathedral
The Royal Chantry, Cathedral Cloisters, Chichester, PO19 1PX
A Norman cathedral founded in 1075, home to works by Marc Chagall, John Piper and Graham Sutherland. Free to enter. Evensong is sung by the cathedral choir most weekday evenings during term time.
Chichester Festival Theatre
Oaklands Park, Chichester, PO19 6AP
One of the UK's flagship producing theatres, staging world premieres and West End transfers since 1962. The main house seats 1,200; the intimate Minerva Theatre seats 280. The annual summer season runs May to October.
Pallant House Gallery
9 North Pallant, Chichester, PO19 1TJ
An award-winning gallery housing one of the best collections of Modern British art outside London, including works by Henry Moore, Barbara Hepworth and Eduardo Paolozzi. Free for under-18s. Adult admission £17.
The Novium Museum
Tower Street, Chichester, PO19 1QH
Chichester's museum, built over the remains of a Roman bathhouse visible through the glass floor. Covers the city's Roman, medieval and modern history. Free entry for all visitors.
Priory Park
Priory Lane, Chichester, PO19 1NS
A Green Flag park within the city walls, with a cricket ground, bowling green, adventure playground, and the remains of the medieval Greyfriars chapel. Free entry, open dawn to dusk.
Chichester Canal
Canal Wharf, Canal Basin, Chichester, PO19 8DT
A restored section of the Portsmouth and Arundel Canal running 3.5 miles from the canal basin to Chichester Harbour at Birdham. Flat towpath suitable for pushchairs and wheelchairs. Boat trips operate from the basin.
FAQs
QWhat is there to do in Chichester?▼
Chichester has a free Norman cathedral, Pallant House Gallery, the Novium Museum built over Roman baths, and the Festival Theatre. The Pallant quarter has independent restaurants and wine bars. West Wittering beach and Fishbourne Roman Palace are both within 20 minutes by car.
QWhat family activities are there in Chichester?▼
The Novium Museum is free for all visitors and has Roman baths under a glass floor. Priory Park has a free playground inside the city walls. Canal boat trips run from £7 for children. Flip Out at Chichester Gate has indoor trampolining and soft play from £9.50.
QWhat free things can I do in Chichester?▼
Chichester Cathedral is free and hosts Tuesday lunchtime concerts at 1:10pm during term time. The Novium Museum is free for all. The city walls circuit takes 40 minutes. Priory Park and the canal towpath are free. The farmers market is free to browse on the first and third Friday each month.
QWhat is a good rainy day activity in Chichester?▼
The Novium Museum (free, Roman baths under glass) and Pallant House Gallery (£17 adults, free under-18s) are both central and fully indoor. Chichester Cinema at New Park shows independent films from £3 for children. Flip Out at Chichester Gate has indoor trampolining from £9.50.
QWhere can I park in Chichester?▼
Avenue de Chartres multi-storey (PO19 1BJ) is the largest and closest to the centre. Northgate (PO19 1BA) and Cattle Market (PO19 1JW) are also central. On-street parking is limited to 1 to 2 hours. A park-and-ride runs from the A27 Westhampnett site on busy Saturdays.
QHow do I get to Chichester by train?▼
Chichester is on the West Coastway line with Southern trains from London Victoria (1 hour 40 minutes), Brighton (50 minutes), Worthing (30 minutes), and Portsmouth (20 minutes). The station is a 10-minute flat walk from the Market Cross at the city centre.
QWhat markets are in Chichester?▼
The Chichester Farmers Market runs on the first and third Friday of each month, 9am to 2pm in East Street, with Sussex cheese, fish, bread, and seasonal vegetables. A general market runs on Wednesdays. The Christmas Market runs from late November around the Market Cross.
QWhat is near Chichester for a day out?▼
Fishbourne Roman Palace is 5 minutes west. West Wittering beach is 20 minutes south. Goodwood Estate is 10 minutes north. Bosham village is 10 minutes west. Petworth, Arundel Castle, and the Weald and Downland Museum are each under 30 minutes.
QAre dogs allowed in Chichester?▼
Dogs are welcome in city centre streets, Priory Park (on lead), and along the canal towpath. The cathedral welcomes well-behaved dogs. Chichester Harbour foreshore and South Downs paths are generally dog-friendly, though seasonal livestock restrictions apply on some downland routes in spring.
QWhen is the Festival of Chichester?▼
The Festival of Chichester runs from mid-June to mid-July each year with around 125 events including jazz, theatre, folk music, comedy, and visual art across the city. Most events are ticketed individually; see festivalofchichester.co.uk for the current programme.