Shell Grotto

Margate’s unique attraction is a mysterious subterranean grotto, discovered in 1835. It’s a claustrophobic collection of rooms and passageways embedded with 4.6 million shells arranged in symbol-rich mosaics. It has inspired feverish speculation over the years – some think it a 2000-year-old pagan temple or a secret meeting place for cultists, while others see an elaborate 19th-century hoax. Either way, it’s a one-of-a-kind spot.