Getting Around Canterbury

It is easier getting around Canterbury City Centre on foot, as the majority of the City centre is now a pedestrian zone. The City centre is classified as the area within the surviving city walls. Outside of the City walls, however, both parking and driving is a little trickier; after all this is a City that was built way before our love of the car took over.

My advice to friends visiting Canterbury would be to stay in a hotel within walking distance of the city walls, that way you can park at your hotel and get around everywhere else on foot.

Getting around Canterbury by Bike

Cycling in Canterbury anterbury is a perfect place to get around by bike. If you don't have your own with you, you can hire them at Downland Cycles, amongst others. There are also plenty of cycle routes in and around Canterbury, as well as to the nearby coast should you and your family wish to go further afield. All information on these routes can be found at Downland Cycles or in any of the tourist information locations in the City. Cycling remains one of the more pleasant ways of getting around, giving you a more tranquil and genteel way of seeing the sights and sounds of this historic city.

Coming by Car?

If you are planning to drive into the city, there are a number of options regarding parking to help you in getting around Canterbury. If you are only planning to go to the city for a day trip, then I can heartily recommend the Park and Ride facilities around the city.

Park and Ride

The Park and Ride facility, for those of you that may not be aware, is a facility where you park your car in a facility outside of the city, and then connect to public transport, in Canterbury's case, the bus, which will take you into the city centre. This is a cheaper option than parking within the city, should you wish to stay in the city all day.

For just £2.50 per car, a driver and up to six passengers can park their car all day, but not overnight. The park and ride car parks are located at different ends of the city; at Wincheap, Sturry road and Dover road. More details can be found at this link Park and Ride Map .

Parking within the City

The car parks within the city walls are generally more expensive. Details of all parking can be found at the link below.

If I am parking in the City Centre, I like to use the WhiteFriars car park, but only if it is a short trip (Whitefriars is right in the centre of the city, but is quite pricey if you are there for over 2hrs).

The added bonus is that Whitefriars is a multi-storey car park and I nearly always manage to get a space.

A lift takes you directly into the main shopping precinct which is perfect for getting around canterbury. If you want to use Shop mobility this is also found at the Whitefriars car park, on level 2.

If it happens to be a downpour of rain on the day you are going into the city, after all according to foreign legend, it always rains in England, you can purchase an umbrella for £Â£2 at a vending machine at the bottom of the lift at Whitefriars car park.

The other option for parking within the city walls that I use regularly is Pound Lane, which is located at the West Gate. It is little cheaper, but usually fills up pretty quickly, so I have to get there early to get a space.

Here is a link to a list of all the car parks within the city, it's worth printing off and taking it with you. If you happen to be local and want an up to date list of available car parking spaces, then check out this interactive website where you can get up to the minute information on parking availability.

Train Stations

There are two train stations in Canterbury, Canterbury East and Canterbury West. Both are within walking distance of the city walls, with Canterbury East having an over pass to get you over the busy A28 into the City walls.

Canterbury East trains come from Victoria Station in London and Canterbury West from Charring Cross and Cannon street. Either are viable options to get in to Canterbury. There is more on my getting to Canterbury page. Hopefully I have given you some insight and ideas on the best ways on getting around Canterbury