The 66-mile route takes in Dover’s White Cliffs and Dungeness and is latest section of national coastal route to be completed

The first south-eastern stretch of a national trail that will eventually allow people to walk the whole way around England’s coastline has opened.

The 66-mile route, which starts in Camber in East Sussex and finishes in Ramsgate, Kent, is the latest section to become part of the England Coast Path. When completed in 2020, it will be one of the world’s longest coastal walking routes at 2,700 miles (4,345km).

The south-eastern route, which opened on Tuesday, includes landmarks such as the White Cliffs of Dover, cultural heritage buildings like Napoleonic Martello towers and second world war defences and the unique conservation areas of Dungeness and Pegwell, known for their birdwatching, landscape and summer flowers. Three miles of new path have been created at Sandwich, giving access around the peninsula for the first time.

It will also provide a walking link between communities and towns along the coast including Camber and Lydd, Greatstone and Hythe, and Deal and Sandwich.

It is the first stretch of the trail in the south-east of England, following earlier openings in Somerset, Cumbria, Durham, Dorset and Norfolk. A further 68 miles is set to open between Filey in North Yorkshire and Middlesbrough on 21 July.

The trail, overseen by the government advisory body Natural England, is a result of a 2009 access act that gives everyone the right to explore the open coast. Before the act, only around half of the English coast was accessible to the public. Work is underway on 60% of the route.

The four-metre wide trail must avoid private houses and gardens, major ports, Ministry of Defence land and sensitive conservation sites. The act also allows for “roll back” – moving back the path where land has eroded, securing people’s right of access forever.

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By incorporating the 11 existing coastal trails in England – including the 630-mile South West Coast Path which already makes it possible to walk round the whole of the south-west peninsula – the England Coast Path will eventually form a continuous national shoreline trail.

The scheme suffered early delays after it was announced in 2007, with only 20 miles completed by 2013. In December 2014 the then deputy prime minister, Nick Clegg, announced a £5m funding increase to bring forward the completion date to 2020.

It is hoped the route will boost tourism revenue. More than 70 million trips are made to the English coast each year, with visitors spending more than £1.4bn. The South West Coast Path alone is estimated to bring more than £300m per year into the regional economy, while for every £1 spent on the Pembrokeshire coastal path, £57 is thought to be generated in tourist spending.