Dover

What is there to doin the port of Dover? It does not look too exciting. Do we go to London? Limitd time though...only 7am-5pm

Are you on a cruise stop for the day in Dover? If so, I would not go to London. You could go to Dover Castle and to see the White Cliffs. You could also go to the lovely quaint city of Canterbury and see the beautiful Cathedral and lovely city. You could take a tour of the coast going to Sandwich and Deal, etc. I recommend Dover Cabs and a fabulous fellow named Malcolm for a guide. We loved him and loved the tour. Will give more info if you are interested.

whatnot has covered the main options

- Dover Castle (has a continuous active history from the 10th century right thro to WW2). Walkable, but at the top of the cliffs overlooking Dover - I suggest you go by bus or taxi & decide according to time, weather & mood whether to ride or walk back. The town is quite limited.

- or take the train to Canterbury, quaint & historic centre with famous cathedral, "The Canterbury Tales" attraction, locally-run shops & cafes.

Direct half-hourly train service (from Dover Priory station), journey time 30 mins, day-return fare £8.

http://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/service/planjourney/search

There are other options around Dover, but IMHO worthwhile only for those who've already been to the castle & Canterbury.

JB :)

I would love more info on the guide you used. Could you please contact me? Not quite sure how to communicate directly. Thanks!

So sorry I have not responded to your post. Hope it is not to late. We have been out of town and I did not have the info with me. We used Dover Taxis. Email is Dovertaxis@aol.com. You will probably contact Karen Moon. Tell her what you want to do. Do you want to go to Canterbury? Do you want to take the coastal tour to Deal, Sandwich, see the White Cliffs, and Dover Castle? She will put together a trip that includes the things you want. We were staying in Canterbury and wanted a local tour before we went to the Dover cruise terminal. We did a 4 hour coastal tour to Deal, Sandwich, White Cliffs, saw Dover Castle but did not go inside and had lunch at a local restaurant. She can put together a tour that fits your needs. There were 10 of us so we did 2 vehicles and 2 guides. The guide I had was Malcolm. He was fabulous! The other guide was Bill. I am sure he was good too, but I can not vouch for that!

Hope you have a great trip!

We flew into LHR and were transported directly to Dover. Our room was not ready. We took a taxi to Dover Castle and arranged for the taxi to pick us up at 4 pm. It was a really enjoyable time touring the castle, the underground hospital and the grounds around the castle and lunch. We certainly did not see all that there was to see there. That evening, we had dinner on our balcony overlooking the channel. The next morning, the taxi returned to take us to the ship. Before the taxi arrived, we wandered around some of the shops/stalls behind the hotel. We really enjoyed our relaxed time in Dover. If we had arrived another day earlier, then Canterbury would certainly be another stop for us.

You could easily spend a whole day at Dover Castle if you are a history buff (especially military history).

Also a quick plug for my Regimental Museum in the keep (Queen's Regiment and Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment):D

I second the Castle as a place to visit. Lots to see, ancient (12 century) and modern - well WW2 anyway. There is a restaurant and various snack bars/tea rooms to keep you going and it is close enough that you will have no worries about getting back to the ship in time.

"~the entire interior of Henry’s Great Tower palace has now been breathtakingly recreated. Historians, designers, artists and craftspeople have combined to present it as it might have appeared when newly completed, and ready to receive an important visitor, Count Philip of Flanders, in 1184."

"Henry is Henry II 1133 – 1189)

"Flanders" is now part of Belgium.

We flew into LHR and were transported directly to Dover. Our room was not ready. We took a taxi to Dover Castle and arranged for the taxi to pick us up at 4 pm. It was a really enjoyable time touring the castle, the underground hospital and the grounds around the castle and lunch. We certainly did not see all that there was to see there. That evening, we had dinner on our balcony overlooking the channel. The next morning, the taxi returned to take us to the ship. Before the taxi arrived, we wandered around some of the shops/stalls behind the hotel. We really enjoyed our relaxed time in Dover. If we had arrived another day earlier, then Canterbury would certainly be another stop for us.

Can you tell me what service you used from Heathrow to Dover, please? We will need that transfer on July 1st this year.

Thanks.

battanhr at comcast dot net

Can you tell me what service you used from Heathrow to Dover, please? We will need that transfer on July 1st this year.

 

Thanks.

 

battanhr at comcast dot net

I sent you an email with the link. It was Smiths for Airports.

I sent you an email with the link. It was Smiths for Airports.

Thanks for the email & link. :)

So sorry I have not responded to your post. Hope it is not to late. We have been out of town and I did not have the info with me. We used Dover Taxis. Email is Dovertaxis@aol.com. You will probably contact Karen Moon. Tell her what you want to do. Do you want to go to Canterbury? Do you want to take the coastal tour to Deal, Sandwich, see the White Cliffs, and Dover Castle? She will put together a trip that includes the things you want. We were staying in Canterbury and wanted a local tour before we went to the Dover cruise terminal. We did a 4 hour coastal tour to Deal, Sandwich, White Cliffs, saw Dover Castle but did not go inside and had lunch at a local restaurant. She can put together a tour that fits your needs. There were 10 of us so we did 2 vehicles and 2 guides. The guide I had was Malcolm. He was fabulous! The other guide was Bill. I am sure he was good too, but I can not vouch for that!

Hope you have a great trip!

How much was your 4 hour tour?

Our 4 hour tour was 120 pounds. It was from Canterbury to the Dover port.

I sent you an email with the link. It was Smiths for Airports.

Smiths for Airports are a good firm with an excellent reputation, but since they are based in Portsmouth, I suspect that their price would be higher or a lot higher than a Heathrow or Dover based firm.

Sorry, Peteymil. I should have said it was per vehicle. And they were big vans. If you were only 2 people you could probably get a cheaper rate because the vehicle uses less gas.

How far is the cruise port to the castle and the white cliffs? Is the castle walkable from the ship? (We do like to walk with no mobility issues.) We are on a Celebrity cruise stopping in Dover in July.

Peggy

Neither are easily walkable. You will need a cab.

How far is the cruise port to the castle and the white cliffs? Is the castle walkable from the ship? (We do like to walk with no mobility issues.) We are on a Celebrity cruise stopping in Dover in July.

 

Peggy

Hi Peggy,

Don't be deceived by the 1.5 miles between cruise terminal & castle - the last half-mile is seriously steep.

The "white cliffs" are to the east of the town & ferry terminals, and beyond the castle. The cruise terminal is at the western end of the harbour.

Because of the lie of the land, you need to take a taxi to the white cliffs carpark near the coastguard station (refreshments there), then a 1/4 mile walk along fairly level foot/cycle path. Or a 25 minute walk from the castle.

Here's the view from that path

https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?saddr=Constable's+Rd&daddr=Unknown+road&hl=en&ll=51.131754,1.342907&spn=0.008483,0.042443&sll=51.132656,1.342628&sspn=0.009345,0.021222&geocode=FeQtDAMdOCIUAA%3BFZM0DAMdlW4UAA&oq=dover+castle&t=h&dirflg=w&mra=dme&mrsp=1&sz=16&z=15&layer=c&cbll=51.131759,1.342891&panoid=KnOxCHLeiyO-DCV6s38q4w&cbp=11,83.16,,0,0

If you spin the camera, you'll see the ferryport below (access only for ferry passengers) and you can just make out the cruise terminals at the far end of the harbour.

But best views are from the sea, so hope for good weather when you sail.

BTW, the cliffs are more sentimental than spectacular - before mass air travel the vast majority of Brits visiting foreign shores sailed via Dover, & the white cliffs of Dover were the first sight of the homeland.

So they really mean more to us than to you.

There are far more spectacular chalk cliffs at Beachy Head & the Seven Sisters, just beyond Eastbourne & a couple of hours of tolerably scenic driving from Dover.

The YouTube contributor who compiled this clip cheated & used photos of Beachy Head & Seven Sisters as well as Dover - easy to spot, they're clean & white whereas the cliffs at Dover have a lot of vegetation, But it still brings a tear to my eye :o

JB :)

Thanks for the replies to my question about walking to the castle or the white cliffs. I don't think DH would appreciate a long walk followed by more walking at the sites.

Peggy

Sorry, Peteymil. I should have said it was per vehicle. And they were big vans. If you were only 2 people you could probably get a cheaper rate because the vehicle uses less gas.

Thank you!

If you want something a little different to see near dover I would really recommend the south foreland lighthouse. It's a lovely coastal walk from dover and they have a seriously good tea room. More recreation than sight seeing but fabulous views and very interesting tour. In the summer months the national trust run a minibus service up there from dover.