Please recommend a town by the sea - love watching boats

Big boats, fishing boats, yachts, or ferries?
Horses for courses.

Maybe need to be up north with that budget...your money will go further

Have a look at Margate, Ramsgate or Broadstairs.
Lots of sea and beaches.
Great restaurants.
Excellent rail links.

Sailing boats and working boats

Difficult down this part of the world - south coast. You might get a small flat for that money - but I guess your best bet is certainly north of the country.

Property prices are ridiculous.

Northumberland could be worth a look

Hornsea or Filey.

Saltburn by the sea, just north of Whitby. A 3 bed semi would be within that price range.

Try looking around Milford Haven in Pembrokeshire. It is a beautiful part of the world. There are lots of all kinds of boats in the rather up market marina along with restaurants, pubs, cafes etc. There is also a train station. You should be able to get a nice property there in your budget.

There are plenty of terraced houses or semis on the South Coast, West Sussex, Isle of Wight.

‘Right move properties for sale South Coast’ , put in your budget and see what you can buy, there seem to be plenty.

Hastings is nice, I thought, when I went there.

Portsmouth or Gosport? Poole?

Lived in Leigh-on-sea and Canvey island. Rather pleasant places to live with reasonable priced property.

Teignmouth is a lovely little seaside town.

Oban is beautiful. Has the most amazing sunsets. Lots of working boats and the ferry over to the Islands. Lovely atmosphere. I too would suggest further north to get more more for your dough.

Also anywhere among the north Wales coast. Rhyl, Prestatyn, Abergele. All have lots of sea, boats and good rail connections. Welsh, I suspect, isn't a necessity, though further round from Conwy you'd be best to learn some!

I also recommend Margate .
It went through a long bleak period . Then , first time house buyers , unable to afford expensive Brighton moved there in droves .
Now it's up and coming and you can afford it as well .
It's great if you want a day trip to London and there's so much to see on the South Coast .

I have family living in North Wales and I wouldn’t recommend Rhyl or Prestatyn. Nice places in there hey day but not any longer. Maybe places like Conway and further down the coastline would be more suitable.
As for Hornsea and Filey in N. Yorkshire they would get my vote too.

Another vote for lovely Thanet ( Margate et al) but I think that you will find it a struggle to buy a three bedroom house with a garden for £300k in the area.

Have you thought about Anglesey? My most favourite place on earth. Quiet, friendly, the whole island surrounded by water....Trearddur Bay, Rhosneigr, Red Wharf Bay, Cemaes Bay....all beautiful. South Stack lighthouse and Penmon Point are my particular favourites, where it's too easy to fall asleep whilst reading the newspaper....🤭🤭

I completely understand your love of boats OP, boat watching is an enjoyable passtime. Lymington, Hants is a town we often visit, I love it, it has a harbour and marina, a bit on the expensive side. I also love the South Hams part of Devon for that too. Northumberland had some lovely beaches when we visited and Wales of course, amazing coasts, some of the very best in Britain. I'd investigate both locations probably cheaper. Good luck, hope you find somewhere that suits you.

Northumberland?
The coast is stunning....Amble, Alnmouth, Seahouses, Seaton Sluice etc
Staithes - N Yorks.

I live near the sea on South Coast. You usually pay a premium for houses with a sea view, which are often tall Georgian/Victorian town houses split into flats. There are also modern marinas with new blocks of (expensive?) flats overlooking.
I've lived in assorted places in England, and I'm surprised you've no preference for location.

My MiL lives in Bridlington so I go there often. I am not aware of drug problems. It has a pretty harbour but when tourist go home it's very quiet on the winter. The season tends to start in April.