Kent (Slow Travel)
About this ebook
The diversity of Kent is striking – and this in-depth guide covers many lesser-known locations as well as all the most popular places. Embraced by the English Channel, North Sea and Thames Estuary, the county’s 200 km of coastline includes some of Britain’s finest seaside resorts and maritime walks. British history is writ large across Kent. Roman ruins include Richborough Fort and Lullingstone Villa. Keep an eye out for invaders along the ramparts of Dover Castle or from one of the Napoleonic Martello Towers that guard Kent’s southern coast. Imagine the lives of historical figures as diverse as Anne Boleyn, Charles Darwin and Vita Sackville-West in the castles and grand country houses in which they once lived, or visit the Historic Dockyard Chatham, where Lord Nelson’s flagship HMS Victory was built.
Explore Dover and spend time at its iconic White Cliffs, saunter through Vita Sackville-West’s gorgeous gardens at the National Trust’s Sissinghurst estate, visit the grave of Pocahontas in Gravesend, and contemplate thought-provoking public art in the revitalised seaside town of Folkestone. Canterbury Cathedral, part of a UNESCO-listed World Heritage Site, forms the seat of the Church of England, while Dungeness comprises an extraordinary beach of vegetated shingle that is home to artist and film-maker Derek Jarman’s Prospect Cottage. There are oddities too, such as St Leonard’s Church in Hythe, which houses the UK’s largest and best-preserved collection of ancient human skulls and bones, and Europe’s only crab museum (in Margate). From castles and water-sports to beaches and wildlife (including reintroduced European bison!), discover Kent with Bradt’s unique Slow Travel guide.
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About the author
UK -born writer, photographer and artist, Simon Richmond (www.simonrichmond.com) has been researching and writing global travel guidebooks and other non-fiction titles for major publishers including Lonely Planet, Rough Guides, DK Eyewitness and Time Out for over 25 years. Having lived overseas for nearly two decades, Simon first visited Folkestone in 2014, during the third edition of its arts triennial. He was so taken by the seaside town that, three weeks later, he had bought a flat and was planning his relocation from London. By switching the city for the seaside Simon, like many other DFLs (Down From Londoners) has benefited from an improved quality of life. In his research for Slow Travel Kent he’s travelled all over the county, revisiting favourite haunts such as Canterbury, Ramsgate, Margate and Dungeness; it’s also been a treat to find good reasons to journey out to remote but sublime locations like the Isle of Grain and the Isle of Harty. He’s particularly enjoyed tracking down Kent’s horticultural treasures, particularly lesser-known gems like Pines Gardens in St Margaret’s Bay and the gardens attached to Restoration House in Rochester. Follow the visual record of his travels on Instagram (@slowtravelkent) and catch some of his sketches of the region on www.facebook.com/
