Margate has a rich past to be discovered, and the town has an interesting collection of churches, their spires and towers making their mark on the town. The bright, bustling town centre is great for shoppers as well as being a centre for eating out, drinking and dancing, or simply relaxing. Margate is the place to come for theatre ? with the Theatre Royal - the second oldest theatre in the country, and the Tom Thumb Theatre - the smallest in the country. Margate was the first resort to have donkey rides in 1790 and the first to introduce deck chairs in 1898. There may be a faster pace to the resort these days, with surf boards, sail boards and arcades but there are still donkey rides, cockles and whelks, the rhythm of the tide and the timeless glory of the sands.