Canterbury Travel Forum

Hello everyone! First post.

My family and I will be flying from the US in late September for an approximately 10-day stay in England. We have chosen to go the self-catering route and to make our "base" for travel in an apartment that is literally across the street from the West rail station in Canterbury (we have stayed in Ashford before). We intend to use the rail and bus services for our sightseeing tours to places such as Dover, Leeds Castle, Tenterden, etc., and for several day trips to London. We are unsure, as yet, of how many days we will actually be traveling by bus/rail, but I know we will be doing a lot of this kind of travel -- possibly as much as 10 days traveling by bus and rail. The total party will consist of four adults (one is a senior) and one 6-year-old child. The choices of multi-day rail passes are bewildering ... can any of you help in suggesting the best multi-day bus, rail and Underground tickets for the price? Are there any multi-day passes that combine any of these services? (Since we'll all be traveling together, it's OK if the suggestions are for multi-party passes.) Also (full of questions, here, yes), am I correct in assuming that most of the rail service in and around the southeast is second class, so no need to spring the extra money for first-class rail passes? (What is the difference between first and second class, anyway?) As for the arrival trip to Canterbury from Heathrow, I'm assuming we can hop on the Heathrow Express train to London, change trains in London, and take the Southeastern line to Canterbury West station via Ashford International. Is there any restriction to taking airline luggage on local trains? I'd hate to have to pay cab fare for that journey.

(When we were last in the UK, I remember purchasing a one-day rail card at Ashford International that paid for all rail and Underground passage for one day -- and it wasn't expensive. Do they still offer things like that?)

This will be my second time in the UK, and the first time we had hosts (via a sister city relationship with Ashford) who drove us everywhere we wanted to go in their personal cars. This time we want a little freedom to do what we want, when we want to -- hence the decision to rely on trains & buses without the hassle and worry of renting a car. Good idea? Bad idea? Suggestions? I await your expertise!

You definitely do not need first class rail tickets. I've lived here 3 years and still can't figure out what the difference is. The combination you want for rail service plus unlimited Tube in London is called a Travel Card. It's available for off-peak hours. Trains here are expensive and I do think renting a car may actually save you money, but you'd have to check all that out. It may save you some hassles but if you're not used to driving in the English style, trains may be a good choice. Enjoy your trip!

The South East Trains website is quite good in its days out section. They have 3 days passes for £24 each (and children travel for £1.00)plus some ideas for places such as Leeds Castle where you need to use the bus too. The link is at www.southeasternrailway.co.uk/main.php?page_id=130
There is no supplement for taking luggage on trains here. I am not too sure about a lack of first class seating but as journeys are only short this should not be a problem. Most of the trains in the area you are going to are relatively new as well.
As for getting from Heathrow to Canterbury - take the Heathrow Express in to Paddington and then take a taxi to Charing Cross (main line) for the train to Canterbury. Do not use the tube if you have a lot of luggage.
Do not drive - the roads are congested and parking can be difficult. The trains take you centre to centre with no parking costs and you do not need a timetable - just turn up and there will be a train with at least a 30 minute frequency on any line (more in the peak).
Not sure about London travel as I have not been for sometime.

From Ashford there are different One-Day Travelcards, one covers you to go and return at any time, and the Off-Peak is based on the time the train arrives at the destnation station in London. The last time my wife bought the latter on a Saturday is was a tad over £20 for an adult.

Generally, an off-peak "All Zones Travelcard" means any train departing Ashford after about 8.45am.

I travel everyday from down the line and it's £92 for 7-days with tubes and buses as well as train to London. So you are looking at much less for shorter periods.