Its two sandy beaches have remained a popular tourist attraction since the town's development in the 1860s from a small farming community.

Residents have included the 19th-century surgeon Sir Erasmus Wilson and former archbishop of Canterbury William Temple.

The artist Sir William Quiller Orchardson painted several of his best-known pictures whilst living in Westgate-on-Sea.

Before the 1860s, Westgate consisted of only a farm, a coastguard station (built 1791 and still standing in Old Boundary Road) and a few cottages for the crew that surrounded it.

These were located beside the coast at St Mildred's Bay, named after Mildrith, Thanet's patron saint and a one-time Abbess of Minster.

[3] A stretch of sea wall, with promenade on top, was constructed around the beaches at St Mildred's Bay and West Bay, and the land divided into plots to be sold for what would become an exclusive development by the sea for wealthy metropolitan families[4] within a gated community, rather than for occasional tourists.

[9] In 1884 it was reported that Essex, on the other side of the Thames Estuary, was hit by a tremor so large that it caused the bells of St. James' Church to ring.

Six Yablochkoff lamps – a type of arc light – were installed, they were powered by a Garrett engine and were lit for 96 hours.

[23] On 1 August 1914, after the outbreak of World War I, a Royal Navy seaplane base was opened by the coast to defend the Thames Estuary naval towns against attack.

[24][25] During the war, the Coronation Bandstand was converted into sleeping quarters for use by the Royal West Kent Regiment.

[20] On 24 August 1942, a German fighter pilot, Herbert Bischoff, was captured after being shot down and crash landing in a field adjacent to Linksfield Rd, just south of the town.

[31] The town lies on the Isle of Thanet, a separate island from mainland Kent until around two hundred years ago, when the channel in between silted up.

[32] In East Kent, the warmest time of the year is July and August, when maximum temperatures average around 21 °C (70 °F).

[34] These are average temperature and rainfall figures taken between 1971 and 2000 at the Met Office weather station in Wye, around 25 miles (40 km) southwest of Westgate-on-Sea: Due to its climate and high grade agricultural soil, a range of cereal and vegetables can be grown in Westgate.

Whether housing should be built on such high grade agricultural land in both Westgate and Birchington is a topic of local controversy.

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

Other stations on this line include Broadstairs, Margate, Herne Bay, Faversham, Gillingham, Rochester and Bromley South.

4 miles (6 km) southwest of Westgate-on-Sea, the A28 crosses the A299 road, which leads along North Kent towards London, becoming the M2 motorway at Faversham.

As a seaside resort and border rural, the economy was mainly based around tourism; there are several hotels and guest houses near the seafront, to accommodate the influx of visitors during the summer.

At the 2021 UK census, the most common occupation of employed Westgate residents was human health and social work activities (21%).

[44] In 2005, 32% of its pupils gained at least five GCSEs at grades A*–C including English and maths, ranking it 71st out of Kent's 120 secondary schools.

An inspection the previous month by the Care Quality Commission uncovered what the inspectors called "shocking examples of institutionalised failings and abuse" and the trust running the schools subsequently went into administration.

Each beach has nearby cafés, restaurants and public houses, and a European Blue Flag Award is shared between them due to their cleanliness and safety.

Designed by local young people, the park caters for skateboarders and in line skaters of all ages and skill levels.

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