The Isle of Sheppey can be fun though, as a day trip from London or some Kent base. Sheerness, the main city is an old seaside resort with a nice path along the Thames Estatuary - the city has a weather-beaten and yeh down at its heels look and is a time trip back to the 50s

I took the train there and you change at Sittingbourne to a shuttle train that goes across a big lift (i think) bridge to the island proper

Near the terminus station there is a large super store for picnic supplies

No not the most scenic place but a kinky one that is something different from the same ole same ole

The Isle of Sheppey can be fun though, as a day trip from London or some Kent base. >>>>

Not by any normal definition of "fun" it can't. It's full of wrong 'uns.

I had fun, thus Sheerness at least can be fun. Granted most tourists would not consider it fun a'tall but a dump. I like dumps. As i remember there is a huge steel works or something right by the train station and a working port. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder

The Cinque Ports - or five old royal ports i believe are old towns once on the sea but now in cases silted up - Sandwich is one of these and makes a good base from which to hop to several neat nearby places.
Famous for the Earl of Sandwich association whose name is now known around the world for the sandwich, this rather small but old town sits a few miles inland. Nearby is Ramsgate, still an active port and Broadstairs, where Charles Dickens' house or something to do with him is there, i think but not totally sure, the town appears in some of his novels and then Margate, still a fairly thriving seaside resort popular on weekends and esp bank holiday weekends with Londoners. (I was there one bank holiday weekend and the place was mobbed with seriously partying younger folk - young 'birds' running around pubs with hats that said "I'm a certified alcoholic, buy me a drink"). Margate has the usual tacky clutter of seaside resorts - Bingo parlour, greasy cafes, taudry pubs, 'rock' and eels for sale, and a general down-market look and feel.

and you need not have a car to go to any of these places as the trains go constantly along the coast from Sandwich to all these places.

Canterbury also makes a great base and trains run in a few minutes from there to all these eclectic places of interest.

vvvvhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinque_Ports

Margate and Ramsgate are both fairly grim. True Ramsgate is undergoing some regeneration, particularly around the harbour, but I still wouldn't recommend either of them to visitors.

GREAT WALKING FROM SANDWICH TO DEAL

This part of Kent also has some of the most thrilling walks in England to me - especially the coast cliff-hugging path from Sandwich to nearby Deal, another historic seaside town.

An unusual part of the walk goes on a footpath from Sandwich that actually goes right along a part of fabled sea- and cliff-side Royal St George's Golf Course, which periodically hosts the British Open. (We actually ended up by mistake on the course, dodging golf balls so pay attention.)
This 'ramble' follows the cliff's edge, but from a safe distance - be sure to heed the warning signs at places that warn that the cliffs there could crumble. Eventually the path, going up rather steeply if i remember from Sandwich, crests to a fine view over the English Channel (but you can't see the Chunnel, of course) and then descends to Deal, a fading former mini seaside resort with a few bingo-esque remainders of days gone by.
These seaside and cliff-side walks are always a favorite of mine no matter where in Britain they are.
Walmer Castle is on the edge of Deal - and this seaside blockhouse like thing is rather famous. Again in Deal, or even by Walmer Castle, you can hop trains to anywhere in Kent.

Sandwich, Kent - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sandwich is a historic town in Kent, south-east England. ... Sandwich has two world-class golf courses, Royal St George's which hosts The Open Championship ...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandwich,_Kent

WALMER CASTLE
From Deal wide cycle and footpaths go along the sea a mile or so to Walmer Castle, one of England's trove of unique and historic castles - in this case more of a fort as Walmer Castle was built by Henry VIII as one of a string of coastal defenses and evolved into an artillery bastion defending the coast.

It later became the residence of the Lords of the Cinque Ports with such lords as William Pitt and the Duke of Welling (who resided here 23 years) - In the castle itself is a Wellington Museum with lots of artifacts and a pair of original Wellies - or Wellington Boots as this ubiquitous English walking thru mud boot has become to be called.

The Queen Mum also stayed here frequently and there is a garden in her memory that is open - the garden being given to her for her 95th birthday.

So for a great day of the Kentish Coast hop trains or cycle or ramble between towns like Broadstairs, Sandwich, Deal and Walmer Castle (there is a train station near the castle).

http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/s...show/nav.14948

Broadstairs, where Charles Dickens' house or something to do with him is there, i think but not totally sure, the town appears in some of his novels >>>>>

He lived there - there's a museum to him. Also Bleak House is in broadstairs.

He almost annoys me as much as Jane Bloody Austen.

C-W is indeed correct, Charles Dickens did stay in Broadstairs. He wrote some of his books here and yes we have the Dickens House Museum, housed in the house he based Betsey Trottwood's home, in David Copperfield on. Bleak House is now a private home and not open to the public, but we have a very pretty beach "Viking Bay" and a High Street with enough little shops to provide for most needs, a small supermarket, for the picnic needs. What more can I say.

I live in Broadstairs.

The Dickens you say! Yes, I think seaside Broadstairs could make a perfect low-key base for the many things within a short train or car or bicycle ride away - are they ample B&Bs like i would expect in a seaside town? Thanks for the info given above.

Broadstairs, Kent, England, is a small town with a population of about 22000 ...
www.btinternet.com/~pdbean/

DEAL - ST MARGARET'S AT CLIFFE - MARTIN MILL - DOVER

Big Deal! Well Deal is not all that much but a nice old seaside resort and the neat Walmer Castle so time to hike onto St Margaret's at Cliffe, which as its name implies is right where the famous White Cliffs of Dover begin - a tad before town. If i remember right you cannot walk from St Maggies up the cliffs themselves as there is a wall of rock at the southern edge of town - so you can walk inland to the Martin Mill train station - a few miles - where next to the station is one of those wondrous English rural pubs - the Ugly Duckling - an ancient looking pub with slanting floors, etc. It's known also for its fine pub grub. From Martin Mill you can hop frequent trains to Dover, which though far from being England's prettiest town, is certainly one of its most captivating - what with its still very active port with ferries coming and going to France and perched on the White Cliffs just above these hectic Eastern Docks, one of England's most awesome castles, Dover Castle.

TBC - A Look at Unusual Dover - Lots and lots to see and do in Kent IMO

Oops forgot to cut and paste Deal's entry in Wiki:

Deal is a town in Kent, England. It lies on the English Channel eight miles north-east of Dover. It is a small fishing community situated between Dover and ...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deal,_Kent

I spend a lot of time walking in Kent, especially over the past couple of months. Favourite places include Wye (great walking country) Leeds Castle, Dungeness, Deal to Dover (with lunch at the Zetland Arms) and Penshurst.

Another option that hasn't been mentined is to head for the Chiltern Hills which is handy for LHR and London. There's great walking around the Princes Risborough/Wendover area.

Londonres - curious as to what route you took from Deal to Dover - can you go up the cliffs from St Margaret's - i was doubtful but not sure

and the view from the top of the Cliffs of Dover - awesome - can see France and similar cliffs on a clear day.

PalenQ - there are good steps down the cliff to the car park and beach, quite close to the public toilets. We tend not to eat at the Coastguard Inn at St Margaret's Bay as we've had a bad experience there. The Noel Coward cafe, up the road at the side of the pub and opposite the Pine Gardens, does really good food. Huge slabs of homemade cake which are impossible to finish if you've already had lunch at the Zetland Arms (Kingsdown).

I've just remembered a great place to stay in Wye, The Wife of Bath:

www.thewifeofbath.com

Possibilities in the Chilterns include:

www.rosecrowninn.co.uk
http://www.thecoppins.co.uk/

Hi y'all,

As a past resident of Kent I read this with fascination - so many places I never went to.

but have you noticed that the OP seems to have disappeared?

I diagnose a case of IO - information overload.

regards, ann

yes but once i got started on one of my favorite English places... well and i think i will use it for a separate post about <Kent is Hopping> or some such title - making rough draft here and other folks may be interested. so i'm not writing for OP but because of the fun of it.

And annhig - i have learnt some good stuff from folks like Londonres - about the St Margarets area hikes, etc.

It must be the heat here, because I am very confused. I realize we lost the original poster, but PalenQ, are you planning a trip to this area or is it that you've been before and are continuing to share and gain new information? And I don't get the remark about cutting and pasting - is that suppose to be a joke or ??? Isn't that what janisj accused you of and you objected? I think I need a drink.