Crawley Sussex Crawley is located just inside the West Sussex border to the south of Surrey, and is around halfway between London and Brighton. This convenient location meant that it was historically used by travellers along the London to Brighton route as a suitable overnight stopping place. In fact the George Hotel that can still be visited on the high street today dates back to 1615, when it was the favoured choice of coach travellers. Today the George Hotel still remains a good choice for travellers, but is more usually frequented by for those looking for a suitable place to stay before jetting off from nearby Gatwick airport, just a few miles away from Crawley town centre. Crawley’s history took a dramatic turn when it was officially designated a New Town in 1947. It was one of the first of a series of new towns that were founded in order to deal with the shortage of housing in the London area after devastation of World War II. This New Town development, combined with fast rail links to both central London and the coast, make Crawley a popular place to live and work. From the attractions outlined below you’ll see that Crawley also has plenty to interest visitors to the area in its own right, being particularly well provided for as far as entertainment and leisure facilities are concerned.