Herne Bay is a seaside town in Kent, South East England, with a population of 38,563. On the south coast of the Thames Estuary, it is 6 miles north of Canterbury and 4 miles east of Whitstable. It neighbours the ancient villages of Herne and Reculver and is part of the City of Canterbury local government district, although it remains a separate town, with countryside between it and Canterbury. Herne Bay's seafront is home to the world's first freestanding purpose-built Clock Tower, built in 1837; from the late Victorian period until 1978, the town had the second-longest pier in the United Kingdom.
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.