Day Trip from London: A British Seaside Summer Break in Whitstable

Day Trip to Whitstable

Sometimes when I have a weekday off to myself, I like to hop on a train and head outside of London.

Very slowly, either solo or with my husband, I am trying to explore more of this country that we’ve called home for the last two years and will do so for the foreseeable future as well. On one such occasion, I took a train from London Victoria to the seaside town of Whitstable, about 90 minutes away. This coastal town is the perfect summer day trip from London and a foodie destination too.

Whitstable ticks all the boxes for me already.

Coffee Break

Taking a morning train means I need some caffeine as soon as I arrive into Whitstable. Located near the beach on the corner of Nelson Road and Island Wall, Windy Corner Stores & Café offers a good selection of homemade baked goods, lunches and a good flat white. Since the outdoor seats are already taken, I sit in the window seat and enjoy some people watching.

Local Art and Street Art

Being a seaside town, Whitstable seemed to have an artsy, relaxed vibe. I found some interesting local art at the Fish Slab Gallery as well as some fantastic street art as I wandered around the narrow laneways. I discovered that several of the stencil art/paste up pieces were designed by Unify, a street artist known for his work around London as well.

All About Those Oysters

Being at the seaside means eating seafood in this coastal town in Kent, of course. And Whitstable is known for its oysters and even hosts an oyster festival in July. One of the popular places to sample some local oysters is at The Forge, which is located right along the beach. I don’t even like oysters, but I tried a couple of them and fed my leftover chips to the yapping seagulls. You’ll also find oysters at the popular Whitstable Oyster Company and the pink-hued Wheelers Oyster Bar.

Walking Along the Harbour

After lunch, I decided to take a stroll along the harbor and look for the colorful bathing boxes which I had read about online. However, I quickly learned, that the seashore was filled with rocks – quite uncomfortable for sunbathing – and so typical of U.K.’s beaches. But that doesn't stop kids from playing along the beach or wading into the sea.

Along the harbour, you’ll also find the Harbour Market Whitstable which features about 35 traders selling everything from coffee and ice cream to handmade jewelry and artwork.

Whitstable Castle

Perched on the hillside, you’ll discover the Whitstable Castle, or the Tankerton Towers, as it was first called by the Pearson family who called the manor house home in the 1790s. The castle is open to the public and features a lovely, small flower garden and an afternoon tea at the café. In case you’d like to know, the castle has experienced an interesting history filled with mistresses, poverty, Rembrandt paintings and more.

Bathing boxes at Tankerton Beach

A bit along the coast, I find a plethora of the bathing boxes – each one different with its brightly colored stripes and décor. Surprisingly, these tiny beach huts sell for several thousand pounds, and there are constantly waiting lists to buy them too. Expensive real estate, but cheaper than our London flat!

At Tankerton Beach, I stumble upon a patch of hogs fennel, also known as sulphur weed, which I learn is one of Britain’s rarest plants and grows in few places, but seems to like the Whitstable coastline quite well. Who knew?

The hot sun made me thirsty so I ventured up the steep hillside and cooled off with a pint of British cider at the Royal Pub.

After an afternoon in the sun, I headed back to the Whitstable train station, about 1.5 miles away, but first treated myself to a seafood risotto dinner at Samphire in the town center. As you can see from my photos, Whitstable is a darling, pastel-hued town that is perfect for a summer break.

What is your favorite summer get away in the U.K.?

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Day Trip from London: An English Castle, Cider Festival and Morris Dancing in Kent

Day Trip to Tenterden

With so many European destinations on our doorstep, it’s easy to forget about exploring the actual country that we live in – the United Kingdom.

But so far this year, we’ve been trying to explore more locations just outside of London. Last month, we took a train to visit Tenterden, a small town located in the Kent district, about 2 hours southeast of London. The town was hosting the 10th Annual Real Ale & Cider Festival
at The Kent & East Sussex Railway, co-hosted by Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA), a group we signed up for that supports and promotes British breweries and pubs.

Had it not been for the beer festival, we probably wouldn’t have chosen Tenterden as a destination since it no longer has a train station. We took a train from Waterloo to Headcorn, then transferred to a local country bus, which stopped close enough to our hotel for the night. We originally planned to take a taxi from the station but learned we would have to wait awhile since we didn’t pre-book and it would cost £22. Yikes! So we figured out the local bus, which runs every 30 minutes – give or take 10 minutes, and took a bus from Headcorn to the London Beach Country Hotel. Cost £3 for two people.

Technically Stayed Overnight  

Okay, so we technically did this journey as an overnight trip, but it easily could be done as a day trip. Our cozy hotel room featured a small balcony, so we brought up a drink from the bar and enjoyed a Kentish countryside sunset. In the morning, we both had a full English breakfast before we set out for the day.

Local Cider & Beer

For the main event on Saturday, we walked about 1.5 miles from our hotel directly to the Kent & East Sussex Railway. Being CAMRA members, our festival admission was free. The event featured more than 50 British beers and 22 ciders. Some of the beers we enjoyed were from: Signature Brew (London), G2 Brewing (Ashford), Kent Brewery (Birling), York Brewery (York) and Kentish Pip Craft Cider (Canterbury). The queues were never that long and the atmosphere was quite jovial and relaxed.

Rolling On the Old Railway

Although Tenterden no longer has an intra-country railway, it does have an old-fashioned steam railway line that travels from Tenterden to Bodiam, a 45-minute journey. Channeling my inner Anthony Bourdain (who had sadly died recently) with a festival beer in hand, I boarded the wooden carriage with plush velvet-lined seats and soaked up the Kentish countryside scenery.  

Hubby and I absolutely loved this train journey and would highly recommend it as a fun day out! The KESR also runs train outings that feature local beers as well as dining options.

A Classic English Castle

Set in the heart of an historic landscape, the 14^th-century, moated Bodiam Castle is considered “one of Britain's most picturesque and romantic ancient monuments.” Just a 5-minute walk from the Bodiam station, we decided to take a few photos of this National Trust property, so we wouldn’t miss out on the next train.

Traditional Morris Dancing

Back at the beer festival, we experienced an unexpected highlight – traditional Morris dancing! Morris dance is a form of English folk dancing based on rhythmic stepping and choreographed routines. The dancers usually wear bells on their shins and use sticks and handkerchiefs as part of the dancing.

The earliest known and surviving written mention of Morris dance, dates to 1448, and records the payment of seven shillings to Morris dancers by the Goldsmiths’ Company in London.

Getting out of the city for a day meant we got to explore a new part of the UK, try some tasty beers, ride an old steam train, see a historic castle and more. I can only wonder what will happen on our next adventure.

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Exploring Petersham Village Gardens in London

What started out simply as a day exploring a new-to-us part of London on our new bikes turned into an afternoon of garden hopping.

Over the weekend, I only had one day off, and the weather happened to be glorious! So unlike typical British weather. I like visiting gardens, such as Kew Gardens and Hampton Court that I’ve written about before, but today I wanted to head down to Ham House and Gardens. Well, we didn’t quite make it that far because after passing through Richmond Park, we cycled through the small “village” of Petersham, which happened to be hosting a gardens’ open house fundraiser. Several owners in the area joined together to open their private gardens to the public to raise money for local charities. We bought tickets on the spot.

Behind a pair of ornate wrought-iron gates along Petersham Road is the entrance to Montrose House, which was one of the gardens for the event. The house is a late 17^th-century Grade II listed building and is named after the 3^rd Duke of Montrose, who was not the original owner. Well, this house boats not only expansive gardens but a greenhouse, not one, but TWO tennis courts as well as a cricket batting area and several large sculptures. Absolutely amazing!

From here, we wandered through Petersham to check out the other gardens and houses.

A little background on Petersham, it’s a village and parish in the Richmond district along the Thames River consisting of 660 acres and takes its name from having belonged to St. Peter’s Abbey at Chertsey back in the 11^th century.

Up to the Tudor period, the Thames landscape between Hampton and Kew consisted largely of quiet riverside villages, orchards and market gardens that supplied Londoners with food. Following the construction of Richmond and Hampton Court Palaces, the landscape began to change as royal and aristocratic families moved to the area. In an area known as the Arcardian Thames, located between Weybridge and Chiswick, a series of grand houses, magnificent gardens and hunting parks were constructed along the river and surrounding woodland. This area is considered “a rural paradise on the doorstep of London.”

Well, we saw several of these grand houses and their splendid gardens on our mini tour of Petersham.

Petersham Lodge, another Grade II listed mansion, located on River Lane, was rebuilt in the early 18^th century for the Duchess of Queensberry. In 1987, Prince Rupert Loewenstein, the longtime financial manager of the Rolling Stones, bought the property for £2 million and lived there until his death in 2014. I can only imagine how much this massive property, with an impressive veg garden, water pond and greenhouses, is worth now!

Outside of Petersham Lodge, I climbed over a fence into Petersham Meadows, one of the preserved farms that originally was part of the Ham House estate dating to the 17^th century. Lovely dairy cows still graze here today, and I walked right amongst them taking photos. You take a girl out of the country, but….you know the rest.

The Petersham gardens’ open house also featured two cottages, which both had some lovingly arranged flower gardens. One garden even included an Airstream caravan purchased from Ohio, USA, and shipped over to London, which the owner uses as his personal office. How cool!

And, I even persuaded hubby to stop at Petersham Nurseries, which was a madhouse, but we looked at the lovely plants that I would like to buy.

Well, this surprise tour of Petersham ended up being a delightful way to spend a Sunday in London. And of course, as how all weekends must end, we stopped at a riverside pub and enjoyed a pint of refreshing cider.

Cheers from London!

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