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 Kent, England travel arrangements, romantic Kent honeymoons, Kent travel packages--
From London, the A2 leads to Rochester, an industrial town on the banks of the River Medway. The first cathedral here was consecrated in 604 AD, while the Norman building was erected 1077 1108. The castle, built in 1127 during the reign of Henry I, is one of the finest examples of Norman military architecture and the highest fortress in England. The city museum is housed in Eastgate House (16th century), while Restoration House (16th century) is probably the most attractive in the city. The Dickens Centre celebrates the life and work of the
great Victorian novelist, who spent the happiest years of his childhood in nearby of Chatham. Rochester was the birthplace of the Royal Navy, and the historic 18th-century Royal Dockyard, extending over 80 acres (32 ha) and once the most important naval base in Britain, is now a museum where the submarine HMS Ocelot is on display.
Destinations in Kent
Canterbury, Romney Marsh, Thanet/Dover
Before you visit Canterbury, take a short excursion south on the A229 to the idyllic village of Aylesford with its 13thcentury Carmelite house, Aylesford Friary. Maidstone, the county town of Kent, boasts the largest church in the county, All Saints Church, which was started in 1395. Here a former palace of the Archbishop of Canterbury has been turned into a heritage center with displays about local history. East of Maidstone on the A20 is the large and picturesque Leeds Castle. Located in a 500acre park with two islands and a golf course, the castle was a favorite residence of the Queens of England in the Middle Ages. Henry VIII converted the main building with its vast banqueting hall into a luxurious royal palace and had the Gloriette built on the north island. At the exit from the castle there is a dog-collar museum. From here, the A20 runs along the foot of the steep scarp of the downs; if you turn northeast onto the A252 at Charing, you can still make out traces of the old pilgrimage route medieval pilgrims followed to the shrine of Archbishop Thomas a Becket, murdered in the cathedral in 1170 by knights believing they were carrying out the wishes of Henry II. |
