Discover Kent: Spend A Long Weekend At Tanner Farm Park
Discover Kent: Spend A Long Weekend At Tanner Farm Park
Are you looking for a location for your next camping or touring break? If you’re looking for a peaceful stay in the great British countryside, we’d like to suggest Kent as your next adventure. The garden of England is perfect for exploring and we’re going to focus on the area around Tanner Farm Touring Caravan and Camping Park in Marden, in the west of the county. Here are our suggestions for a three night stay in this special part of England.
Day One – Explore the Kent and East Sussex Coastline
The coastline in the south east is considerably different to elsewhere. Toward Dover and Folkestone, you’ll find some of the busiest shipping lanes in the world, but as you move away to the Kent/East Sussex border, you’ll notice a different landscape. You’ll depart Tanner Farm Park for the historic town of Rye, just over 20 miles away. Here, you’ll park one of the town car parks, preferably at Bedford Place, from where you can walk up to the beginning of the High Street. At number 2 High Street, you will discover The Fig, the perfect spot for brunch. The locally sourced menu offers a great start to the day.
After you’ve eaten, you’ll take a leisurely meander through the High Street and side roads, taking in the small independent stores, looking at the stunning architecture and thinking of days gone by in this medieval town. Rye was previously surrounded by water and had a hilltop vantage point to detect invaders. Today you can explore the cobbled streets and think of how it used to look.
Walk along Mermaid Street and you’ll come across houses with names like ‘The House Opposite’, or the ‘House with Two Front Doors’. You can also see the remnants of Rye’s smuggling past throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, with networks of tunnels, secret passages and hidden caves. A long-time favourite with poets, artists and craftspeople, Rye is uniquely inspirational. Once you’ve walked along the High Street, you’ll end at Rye Harbour.
Running alongside the river Rother, this is a busy yachting centre, a fishing fleet and services some commercial shipping. The church of the Holy Spirit at Rye Harbour stands in a beautiful location with a memorial to all those who lost their lives in the Mary Stanford Lifeboat Disaster in 1928. The Rye Harbour Nature Reserve is a Site of Special Scientific Interest and entry is free. It has a network of footpaths which provide walks along the sea shore, across fields and large areas of shingle. Once you depart the harbour and walk the scenic streets back to your car, it’s time to drive to Camber Sands, a drive that will take less than 10 minutes. There are three car parks to choose from, all well signposted.
The sandy beach stretches for 3 miles before reverting back to shingle. The sand dunes are a unique experience and the beach has been used in many films. A brisk walk in the winter months, or a warmer meander in summer, and you’ll have experienced one of the south east’s most well known and visited sandy beaches. From here, you’ll drive 15 minutes to Dungeness, one of most unusual landscapes in the country.
It’s well known by locals for the spectacular, if stark, landscape. The desolate area is home to wooden houses, lighthouses and a power station – all within very close proximity! It houses the largest shingle beach in Europe. Dungeness has been designated as a National Nature Reserve, Special Protection Area and a Special Area of Conservation. It is home to 600 species of plants which is a third of all plants found in the UK. The National Nature Reserve stretches across Dungeness to encompass the vast RSPB reserve and is intended to help protect the landscape and its wildlife.
Quite possibly the most famous house in Dungeness, Prospect Cottage was purchased by the film producer and artist Derek Jarman in the 1980s. He turned the Victorian fishing hut into a thoroughly unique home, along with a very unusual garden. Nestled in the wild landscape, it is also shadowed by two former nuclear power stations. The cottage was saved after fundraising efforts to save it and establish a permanently funded programme to conserve and maintain the building, its contents and garden for the future.
You’ll be ready for dinner now, so before you depart Dungeness and head back to Tanner Farm Park, stop at one of the famous fish and chip shops in the area such as The Pilot. After a long day, you’ll be ready to return to the comfort of the park.
Day Two – Hops, Breweries and A Moated Castle
A lighter day today awaits! A short distance from Tanner Farm Park is Tunbridge Wells, where a number of micro breweries are to be found. Beer making is a traditional Kent activity, with oast houses dotting the landscape. Families across the South East and beyond used to spend the summer holidays working in the rolling countryside around the hop farms, harvesting hops and preparing them to be transported. The hop pockets were delivered to the local train station using the strength of the famous shire horses. Oast houses were traditionally used to dry the hops and can be found at many heritage sites across the county.
After lunch in Tunbridge Wells, it’s time to head to Scotney Castle, who have a long history with hop farming. Be sure to read this article before you go. The medieval moated castle looks like something from a fairytale and the Victorian country mansion is set within one of the UK’s best examples of a picturesque garden. Explore the well-loved family home, stroll in the walled kitchen garden, and venture onto the 780-acre estate to enjoy open parkland and ancient woodland.
Have refreshments at the cafe and make your way back to Tanner Farm Park, either to your tent, caravan, motorhome or glamping accommodation for a cosy night in.
Day Three – Nature In Abundance
It wouldn’t be a trip to Kent without exploring the Garden of England in all its glory and there are two treats we definitely think you need to experience. The first is Bedgebury Pinetum, run by the Forestry Commission. Open all year, experience the seasons at this award winning visitor attraction which is loved by tourists and locals alike. It is the perfect open space for exercise, be it at a modest walking pace, or more adrenaline driven activity such as mountain biking, climbing and running.
12,000 specimen trees await, with the landscape changing throughout the year and providing perfect vistas for amateur photographers and wildlife spotters. You can look closely at the unique specimens and learn about tree species for conservation purposes. There are miles of trails to explore. A visitor centre and cafe will welcome you when you are ready for a rest and to read up about what you have just experienced. Because Tanner Farm Park is open all year, as is Bedgebury, you could visit the spectacular light trail that is hosted in the forest each Christmas. This truly is a magical place with much to explore. The only charge is a car parking fee (see notices in the car park where a cashless system operates).
After you’ve finished your morning at Bedgebury, we suggest lunch in the cafe or lunch at your next stop – Bewl Water. Just 5 miles away, Bewl is the largest reservoir in the South East. Again, it is open all year and houses 800 acres of parkland. There are miles of pathways, this time focussed around the idyllic reservoir location. Wildlife is abundant, it is accessible (as is Bedgebury) and gives you a healthy blast of fresh air, whatever time of year.
En route back to Tanner Farm Park, we recommend The Peacock, a Shepherd’s Neame pub which has a selection of local beers to round off your Kent experience! In the 1950s the landlord set up a pop up bar outside for the hop pickers and so it’s a fitting end to your Kentish stay. It’s just 20 minutes back to Marden from here.
We hope our suggested 3 day stay in Kent provides you with some inspiration for your next touring, camping or glamping adventure. Tanner Farm Park is situated in a picturesque part of Kent which has access to some wonderful local spots. And if you plan on staying a little longer, the team at Tanner Farm Park will happily make further recommendations of local wonderments to visit!
