If you were to ask where the top summer seaside holiday destination for 19th-century English people was?
Then, without a doubt, it was Kent County.
As the region in all of England that first developed seaside holiday projects, whenever Londoners mentioned seaside vacations, they were sure to talk about the "Three Gems of the Kent Coast."
The so-called three gems are actually the three seaside towns of Kent County — Margate, Ramsgate, and Broadstairs.
Although these three places are all popular seaside holiday destinations, they cater to distinctly different consumer groups.
Margate was the first famous seaside holiday city in Kent, known nationwide for its seawater therapy projects as early as the 18th century. Coupled with the convenience of taking the mail steamer from London to Margate, the cheap fare, and mature amusement facilities development, it naturally became a gathering place for the lower middle-class citizens.
Ramsgate, compared to Margate, appeared more refined.
