[1] The town began as a small shipping community, receiving goods and passengers from London en route to Canterbury and Dover.

The town rose to prominence as a seaside resort during the early 19th century after the building of a pleasure pier and promenade by a group of London investors, and reached its heyday in the late Victorian era.

Its popularity as a holiday destination has declined over the past decades, due to the increase in foreign travel and to a lesser degree exposure to flooding that has prevented the town's redevelopment.

[4] In the 1830s, a group of London investors, who recognised Herne Bay's potential as a seaside resort, built a wooden pier and a promenade on the town's seafront.

[3] In 1837, Mrs Ann Thwaytes, a wealthy widow from London, donated around £4,000 to build a 75 feet (23 m) clock tower on the town's seafront.

[10] BBC scriptwriter Anthony Coburn, who lived in the resort, was one of the people who conceived the idea of a police box as a time machine for Doctor Who.

The coastal village of Reculver, to the east of Herne Bay, was the site of the testing of the bouncing bomb used by the "Dam Busters" during the war.

At the beginning of World War II, the army cut two gaps between the landward end of the pier and the seaward terminal as a counter-invasion measure.

In 1970, a fire destroyed the pier's pavilion and plans were made to replace it with a sports centre, which was opened in 1976 by former Prime Minister Edward Heath.

The town's suburbs are Hampton, Greenhill and Studd Hill in the west, Eddington and Broomfield in the south, with Beltinge and Hillborough in the east.

The first buildings in the town were built along the east bay, a short distance from the brook outflow, where the road from Canterbury met the sea.

In the 1990s, these defences were deemed to be inadequate and an offshore breakwater, now known as Neptune's Arm, was built to protect the most vulnerable areas of the town.

[18] This was lower than the national average annual rainfall of 838 mm (33 inches),[19] and recent droughts have led to hosepipe bans by Mid Kent Water.

According to Office for National Statistics estimates, during the period of April 2001 to March 2002 the average gross weekly income of households in the Herne Bay area was £516 (£26,906 per year).

The jetty has created a small harbour used by leisure boats and from where tourists can take sailing yacht trips to a seal-watching site in the Thames estuary.

[29] A high number of construction jobs have been created by redevelopment of the seafront, which is expected to continue with the proposed regeneration of the town centre.

Reculver Country Park is about 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Herne Bay, and is home to the cliff-top remains of St Mary's Church, Reculver, with its distinctive twin towers, sited within the remains of a Roman fort; a visitor centre offers information on the local geology, history and wildlife.

[6] Wildwood Discovery Park is about 2.7 miles (4.3 km) south of Herne Bay on the A291 road between there and Sturry, and features over 50 species of native British animals, such as deer, badgers, wild boar and wolves.

Herne Bay railway station is on the Chatham Main Line, which runs between Ramsgate in East Kent and London Victoria.

Other stations on these lines include Broadstairs, Margate, Whitstable, Faversham, Gillingham, Rochester, Bromley South, Gravesend and Stratford International.

There are Stagecoach South East bus services (Triangle/6/36) running to neighbouring Whitstable and to Canterbury, where many Herne Bay residents go to work and shop.

In the late 1990s, the road was converted into a dual carriageway and redirected to avoid passing through urban areas of Herne Bay and Whitstable.

Each summer, the council runs a gardening competition, "Herne Bay in Bloom", which encourages residents and businesses to keep the town looking well presented.

[51] In 2007, the theatre won a large grant from the Big Lottery Fund to renovate and extend their building and provide improved disabled access.

[53] Between the 1960s and the 1990s The Herne Bay Operatic Society contributed to the town and its cultural life, performing regularly at The King's Hall and also at The Marlowe Theatre, Canterbury.

The town's only cinema, the Kavanagh, is part of a Greco-inspired building that incorporates the Heron's swimming pool and the council offices.

The club originated underneath the old St Mary's college on station road until it moved into the purpose-built dojo where it still resides.

The actor and presenter Bob Holness lived in the town as a child and attended Herne Bay Primary School until moving to Ashford.

Some of these musicians were residents of Herne Bay, including Dave Sinclair[81] and Richard Coughlan of Caravan, and Kevin Ayers of Soft Machine.

[82] George W. M. Reynolds, one of the most popular British authors of the early Victorian era, moved to Herne Bay in 1854 and became one of the town's Improvement Commissioners.