Towns Worth Seeing - by station St. Pancras CanterburyCanterbury
Although Canterbury rose to national prominence during the medieval age, it initially 
became an important settlement during the period of Roman occupation (43 to 400 AD). Founded along the ultra-straight Watling Street, leading from the channel ports and crossing the Thames at Londinium, the road forked after London, with branches leading to the capital of Britannia at Colchester and towns further afield in northern Britain. Durovernum Cantiacorum, as Canterbury was then known, was a convenient fording point across the meandering River Stour.
The initial founding of the title: Archbishop of Canterbury by St Augustine, in the 6th century and the later construction of the cathedral in the 10th and 11th century, placed Canterbury at the centre of Christian Britain. The Archbishop of Canterbury is still the head of the Church of England and the Queen is the 'Supreme Governor'. After Thomas Becket's murder in 1170, Canterbury Cathedral became a place of pilgrimage, which was the subject of Chaucer's 'Canterbury Tales' in the late 1300s.
The construction of the channel tunnel during the mid-1990s consolidated Canterbury's position as a popular destination for visitors from the continent, with a nearby interchange at Ashford International Rail Station.
Places worth seeking out in Canterbury include: The cathedral and precincts, particularly the approach from Mercery Lane to the Cathedral Gate which still retains its medieval look and feel. The Westgate (and gardens), the Dane John Gardens (where the Roman wall was reconstructed during the 14th century) or Punting along the Stour. Nearby, there's Chilham Castle, Howletts Wild Animal Park, the seaside town of Whitstable or the ancient woodland of Blean.
Kent, the local county, is referred to as the 'Garden of England' and hops are grown in abundance, especially in the extensive farmland which surrounds Canterbury. Local brewers include Shepherd Neame, with their Spitfire and Bishop’s Finger ales, now available nationally through supermarket chains.
Height restrictions for buildings in the city, mean the cathedral still dominates 10 centuries on. The best place to see Canterbury Cathedral is from St. Thomas's Hill, in the north-west, where the city is mapped out across the floodplain of the Stour.
Train Services run from St Pancras, with passengers changing trains at Ashford or Faversham for Canterbury East and Canterbury West. Services also run to and from Canterbury East via Victoria.
Services take approximately 70 minutes and Canterbury is 60 miles from London.
