Visit Kent by train
As little as one hour away from London with Southeastern
Canterbury, Herne Bay and Whitstable
Visit Canterbury and you’ll experience an astounding city: where the present keeps in harmonious step with the past, where history and heritage quench your thirst for knowledge, where street cafés and quality restaurants feed your appetite, and a thriving arts scene satisfies your imagination. Whitstable’s traditional charms, strong arts culture and rich maritime history sit easily with its renaissance, while the town of Herne Bay embraces the sea with open-armed delight.
Canterbury
Canterbury has the perfect blend of city, coast and countryside, ensuring that however varied your interests you’ll be spoilt for choice. We invite you to stay awhile and explore this fascinating part of the world. You will fall in love with our invigorating coastline, our soothing countryside and our breathtaking heritage…. After all, Canterbury is simply inspirational.
Pilgrims have flocked to Canterbury Cathedral for centuries, ever since the martyrdom of Archbishop Thomas Becket in 1170. The cathedral dominates Canterbury’s skyline and enables the city to rise above the mundane. On entering Canterbury you are imbued with the cathedral’s wonder and feel in awe of human endeavour.
Other buildings find room to shine illuminating their own integral part in Canterbury’s history. Ancient ruins such as St Augustine’s Abbey reach out across the ages, and thoroughfares, streets and houses assert their own place in the city’s life story.
And this story continues, because even though Canterbury is a place steeped in tradition, its attractions are very much alive and in the present day. Luxury hotels, fine restaurants serving food from across the globe, pulsating nightclubs and welcoming pubs combine to give a complete experience.
Whatever a visitor seeks, they will find it in Canterbury. It possesses a quality that that is both timeless and inspiring. Creativity and culture combine to ensure that you return again and again.
Herne Bay
If you visit Herne Bay, you’ll fall in love with the British seaside all over again. With its innate charm and superb coastline, the town offers a treat for the senses. Candyfloss and coffee shops compete for your attention against the timeless wonder of the sea.
Whether you relax on the beach with a picnic or take a dip in the inviting water, Herne Bay will take you back to the holidays of your childhood.
And you can be safe in the knowledge that Herne Bay’s beaches are among the best. Children can create their own magic memories in a safe environment while being inspired by the jet-skiers and sailing boats that take to the waves.
In Herne Bay town, wide pedestrianised streets offer the chance to browse for antiques and bric-a-brac or bargain hunt at one of Kent’s biggest general markets every Saturday.
Whitstable
If Whitstable has one foot in the past, then the other is firmly in the contemporary. Take a look along Harbour Street and you will find modern art galleries, trendy designer clothing, gift and housewares outlets as well as a full selection of cafes, pubs and restaurants.
From the shingle beach you can enjoy some stunning views over the sea – perhaps while supping a pint at the Old Neptune pub, one of few in the country actually on the water’s edge.
A stroll around the harbour will bring you the delights of fresh caught seafood on sale to take home or to be enjoyed in the specialist restaurants nearby. Every July the oyster is celebrated with a week long festival. The town has a rich maritime history and is known the world over for its Native Oysters.
The town’s maritime achievements can be explored in the museum in Oxford Street. It also recounts Whitstable’s part in the world’s first passenger carrying railway line to Canterbury.
