Canterbury Cathedral

Canterbury Cathedral is one of two archbishoprics in England (the other is York) and one of England's greatest sights. It is a hallowed place of pilgrimage and the church buildings date back to 597AD. The soaring nave of the existing church was built in the Perpendicular style, completed in 1405.

A site of worship has stood on the present site of Canterbury Cathedral since Roman times, but it did not become a Christian church until Augustine's proselytising mission was successful in 597AD. A long line of distinguished archibishops has kept the church on its spiritual feet for nearly 1500 years and the current Archbishop, Dr Rowan Williams, is the 104th cleric to have held the position.

The most famous Archbishop of Canterbury was Thomas Becket, who was hacked to death in his own church by ambitious knights after King Henry II famously declared, "Who will rid me of this turbulent priest?" in 1170. Other important figures have included Archbishop Lanfranc, who presided over the English church following the Norman Conquest and was responsible for the construction of the church in a Romanesque style, and the great scholar St Anselm, who followed on Lanfranc's heels.

Despite Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries, a sacking during the Civil War in the 17th century and bombing raids over Kent in the Second World War, the church has continued to prosper. Having undergone extensive renovation in the 20th century, it is impressive for the sheer scale and splendour of its medieval architecture, and it also boasts one of the world's most precious collections of late 12th-century stained glass and some rare examples of Romanesque church frescoes.

Hampton Court Palace

Revisit Tudor times by tracing 500 years of royal history at Hampton Court. Set in 60 acres of manicured gardens, the palace features opulent public rooms, Henry VIII's State Apartments, original Tudor kitchens and Andrea Mantegna's Triumphs of Caesar, one painting in a priceless collection of Italian Renaissance art.

A tour of the interior with costumed guides takes in highlights such as the wood-panelled Georgian Rooms, Cardinal Wolsey's private lodgings and William III's Apartments, which are among the world's finest Baroque state apartments.

The quintessentially English Palace Gardens include the peaceful PrivyGardens, the sunken PondGardens and the Great Vine - the oldest known grape-producing vine in the world. Those that are feeling more adventurous can lose themselves in the 18th-century hedged maze, whose winding lanes cover nearly half a mile.

Leeds Castle  

Listed in the Domesday Book, Leeds castle has been a Norman stronghold and a royal residence for six of England's medieval queens. Originally a Saxon manor house, it was a palace of Henry VIII, a retreat for the powerful and influential, and was described by Lord Conway as "the loveliest castle in the world".

The castle itself is approached via a medieval gate tower, and visitors can visit the ruins of the Barbican and Fortified Mill before crossing a cobbled causeway towards the magnificent façade. A tour inside travels through the ages - from a medieval queen's room through the majestic Henry VIII Banqueting Hall to the 1920s drawing rooms of Olive, Lady Baillie.

The glorious grounds cover over 500 acres, with formal gardens, a duckery, greenhouses, a dog collar museum, a superb modern Aviary, a maze with a secret grotto and a medieval water mill.

The parkland in which the castle is located dates back to the 13th century and the formal gardens were added and maintained from then. Today there are two gardens - the Culpepper, named after the family who owned the castle in the 17th century, is a large cottage garden and The Lady Baillie Garden, named after the last owner of the castle, is a terraced Mediterranean garden. Following the storm of 1987, there was a push on replanting, much of it along the lines of the medieval gardens. The maze was also planted at this time, with 2400 yew trees forming a spiralling path up to an area with panoramic views of the park.

The Duckery is home to many wild ducks, geese and waterfowl. A gate at one end takes you into the tranquil WoodGarden and onto the Pavilion Lawn and the castle itself. The Aviary was transformed by Lady Baillie as she introduced black swans and one of the best exotic bird collections in the country. Set in a walled garden overlooking the Great Water at the castle, there are more than 100 species of parrots, parakeets, softbills and waders from around the world.  

New Forest

Please visit the following link for more information:

New Forest Website

Thorpe Parke

Please visit the following link for more information:

Thorpe Park Website 

Bluewater Shopping Complex  

Bluewater, off Junction 2 of the M25, is Europe's largest shopping complex. With over 330 stores, 11 cinemas and a range of leisure activities from rock climbing to fishing, it is one of Kent's most important visitor attractions.

Bluewater is a shoppers' paradise. There are three department stores (John Lewis, Marks & Spencer and House of Fraser), Habitat, Jessops, several mobile phone shops, specialist childrens' clothes shops, designer fashion (Diesel, Calvin Klein) and all the high street names you can think of (Mango, Zara, Warehouse, French Connection, Jigsaw etc.)

Ideal for a lazy day of shopping, Bluewater has numerous cafés and restaurants (Nando's, Starbucks, Pizza Express) along with a Ben & Jerry's icecream counter!