Attraction · Margate · Kent

Shell Grotto

Set in Margate, Shell Grotto is an attraction. The surrounding 5 km hold 14 more places to visit. A short trip away is Dreamland Margate, 900 m off.

Where

In Margate

inside the built-up area

Warmest months

May–Sep

highs of 17–23°C

In brief

Attraction in Margate

Inside Margate

Shell Grotto is inside Margate’s built-up area, with 14 more places to visit within 5 km. Towns near it ↓

Written from OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, the ONS built-up areas and Met Office 1991–2020 averages.

When to go

How the seasons run

For warmth, aim for May to September (17–23°C highs in Margate).

Jan8° / 3°50 mm

Feb9° / 3°40 mm

Mar11° / 4°34 mm

Apr14° / 6°36 mm

May17° / 8°47 mm

Jun20° / 11°47 mm

Jul23° / 13°46 mm

Aug23° / 14°48 mm

Sep20° / 12°49 mm

Oct16° / 9°72 mm

Nov12° / 6°67 mm

Dec9° / 3°61 mm

Green months are the warmest. Typical afternoon highs and night lows in Margate, and rain in a month. Met Office HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages for Margate. Opening times change through the year: check before you go. Margate’s full climate →

About

Shell Grotto

Attraction.

In Margate, inside the town’s built-up area.

Type: Attraction
Town: in Margate
Official site: shellgrotto.co.uk

Facts: Wikidata (CC0) and OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors).

Plan your visit

How to visit

Entrance fees

EntryA fee is charged

Hours and entry: OpenStreetMap contributors. They change through the year: check its site before you go.

The map

Locating Shell Grotto

The numbers show what else is near Shell Grotto, in the order listed below.

Towns near it

Where to base yourself

The largest of the 4 towns is Margate, with 63,315 people. Every one of these towns counts it as a place to visit.

1 · It’s in town

Margate

63,315 people · 28 places to visit

2 · 2.3 km southeast of it

Broadstairs

25,780 people · 25 places to visit

3 · 3 km south of it

Ramsgate

42,031 people · 26 places to visit

4 · 3.9 km southwest of it

Minster (Thanet)

4,739 people · 30 places to visit

Compare the 4 towns

Town	Where Shell Grotto is	People	Places to visit
Margate	It’s in town	63,315	28
Broadstairs	2.3 km southeast of it	25,780	25
Ramsgate	3 km south of it	42,031	26
Minster (Thanet)	3.9 km southwest of it	4,739	30

Make a day of it

After Shell Grotto

Choose from 35 places within 15 km, such as 5 museums, a theme park and an attraction.

Theme parkDreamland Margate900 m away 2

AttractionThe Scenic Railway900 m away 3MuseumMuseumCrab Museum600 m away 4

MuseumCervia6.6 km away 5

MuseumDickens House Museum4.9 km away 6

Historic houseQuex Park5.3 km away 7

MuseumSundowner6.6 km away 8

MuseumPowell-Cotton Museum5.7 km away

Within 15 km, close and well known first. Numbers match the map.

Good to know about Shell Grotto

Where is Shell Grotto?

Shell Grotto is in Margate, Kent, inside the town’s built-up area.

What is Shell Grotto?

Attraction.

When is the best time to visit Shell Grotto?

May to September are the warmest months in Margate, with afternoon highs of 17–23°C (Met Office 1991–2020 averages).

What else is there to see near Shell Grotto?

Within 15 km: Dreamland Margate (900 m), The Scenic Railway (900 m), Crab Museum (600 m) and Cervia (6.6 km).

Places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database Licence) and Wikidata (CC0), placed in the ONS 2022 built-up area (Open Government Licence v3.0). Visitor counts are the latest Wikidata gives, with their year.

Photos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).

Photo credits (7)

Dreamland Margate: Ruth Johnston from United Kingdom, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
The Scenic Railway: Peet13, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Cervia: stavros1, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Dickens House Museum: Acabashi, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Quex Park: Acabashi, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Sundowner: Stavros1, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Powell-Cotton Museum: Acabashi, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.