Anyone who went to school and read books (or wrote book reports without reading them) has heard of Canterbury of Kent – if not through Chaucer’s “Canterbury Tales,” then through any other British poetry or prose from the middle ages. And there’s a reason: there was a time when Canterbury was the hub for English pilgrims, other church-affiliated folk, and many-a-wonders of the various layers of the British social masses.
Today, Canterbury is one of UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites, home to some of the oldest and most historic churches of England, and simply a beautiful English country town.
Thanks to the high-speed Javelin trains that can transport visitors from London in under an hour, Canterbury has increasingly become a weekend-long road trip destination for visitors – especially around the holidays. In fact, there are daytrip journeys you can book during the holiday season from London Victoria by Belmond British Pullman, which include a Bellini brunch on the way out of London, a performance by the Canterbury Carolers in the famous crypt, and an indulgent four-course dinner on the return.
As for what there is to see in Canterbury, the answer is: a lot. Besides visiting England’s first-ever cathedral (yes, you read that right) that has been built and rebuilt by the Saxons and Normans over the years, you can stroll through the street markets, race around the ice-skating rinks, eat at every gourmet old-school restaurant (of which, believe us, there are plenty), and spend hours at the ample regional history museums. And that’s only a day-trip’s worth of stuff.
