Seen from the street, you may wonder how a cinema can fit inside the building. Come through the doors on Harbour Street to discover a cosy foyer with popcorn, snacks, cold drinks, beers and wines and freshly brewed coffee.
Step into the auditorium and you’ll find 111 comfortable velvet seats (23 on the balcony, 88 in the stalls), excellent quality digital projection and sound, and a large screen that stretches nearly the width of the building. We have step-free access via the rear foyer.
The Palace may have only one screen, but that doesn’t prevent it from showing a variety of the latest films, many unlikely to be showing anywhere else in Thanet. We’re a great independent cinema specialising in great independent films – award-winners, audience favourites, critics’ choices – aiming to be your ticket to the most entertaining and thought-provoking films on offer. We also offer community events and special events, from filmmaker Q&As to our Palace Sunday Silents with live piano accompaniment.
It is easy to find us on Harbour Street next to the beach at Viking Bay. We’re a few minutes’ walk from car parks, bus stops and the rail station, surrounded by restaurants, family-friendly cafes, pubs and ice cream sellers.
The Palace has been run since 2016 by a local family with years of experience in the film industry. They and the wonderful Front of House team are proud to look after this unique seaside cinema and to ensure that it thrives long into the future.
In 2021, the Palace was named by TimeOut magazine as one of the 50 Best Cinemas in the UK and Ireland: “… it is a great place to see a film. It’s on a narrow street leading down to the harbour, and you could walk past its Victorian flint exterior without even clocking it as a picturehouse. Inside, though, it has all the intimate magic of a screen in Montmartre.”