The Best of Kent - a fun 3 hour minibus tour

Departure Point Meet outside the Hampton by Hilton. The minibus will be parked about 50 yards away outside The Three Tuns public house. Return Details Meet outside the Hampton by Hilton. The minibus will be parked about 50 yards away outside The Three Tuns public house. Duration 3 hours Languages Available Human tour guide - English Points of Interest Stop At: Canterbury Canterbury You will be met by your guide Dr Anthony Medhurst at the Hampton by Hilton hotel in St Margaret’s Street at either 8.30am 12 noon or 4pm (depending on your preferred time of departure) and will be escorted to the nearby minibus. Duration: 5 minutes Stop At: Canterbury Canterbury As you leave the Canterbury city centre you will stop briefly by the second of the city's most important UNESCO World Heritage landmarks - St Augustine's Abbey. Founded shortly after St Augustine arrived in Kent in AD597 to convert the Anglo-Saxons to Christianity the abbey was a residence for Augustine and his brother monks and functioned as a monastery. It was also a ‘missionary school’ where classical knowledge and English learning flourished. Among its library of illuminated manuscripts only 150 survived the English Reformation and the dissolution of the Monasteries in 1538. One of these – the ‘Canterbury Gospels’ – survived from AD597 and was used in the recent Coronation of King Charles III. Duration: 5 minutes Stop At: Canterbury Canterbury As you leave the Abbey you will pass two statues depicting King Ethelbert and Queen Bertha on Lady Wootton’s Green. As King and Queen of Kent these two people were most responsible for welcoming Augustine into Canterbury and enabling him to build the foundation for Christianity throughout the country. Duration: Not Available Stop At: Canterbury Canterbury As the tour leaves the outskirts of the city there will be the opportunity to observe the country’s oldest surviving church St Martin’s which also dates from cAD597. The church was originally a chapel used by Queen Bertha but became used as a base by Augustine. The church has Roman origins with Anglo-Saxon and Medieval additions. Duration: Not Available Stop At: Wickhambreaux Wickhambreaux Our route will head east towards the coast via a number of pretty villages. You will first be driven to Wickhambreaux with its delightful medieval village green around which are located the church the manor house rectory inn and mill. You can stop briefly for photos at the 13th century church of St Andrews where one of the WWII Dambusters Squadron Leader David Maltby was both married and later buried after his death in 1943. Another famous resident of Wickhambreaux was the singer and musician Christine MacVie of Fleetwood Mac. Duration: Not Available Stop At: Ickham Ickham We will then depart for the neighbouring village of Ickham with its attractive white weatherboard cottages attractive listed buildings and 13th century church. Duration: Not Available Stop At: Wingham Wingham We will pass through the ancient village of Wingham which with many buildings dating back to the 1200s including the Grade II listed ‘The Dog Inn’ provides a picture perfect part of the tour. Duration: Not Available Stop At: The White Cliffs of Dover Upper Road Langdon Cliffs Dover As we reach the coast you will be driven to a special vantage point on the White Cliffs largely unknown to most visitors. At this most iconic of locations you will get views of Dover Castle the harbour the English Channel and if the weather is clear the nearby coastline of France.After a brief stop here for a history of Dover from Roman times to the Second World War we will head back towards Canterbury through delightful country lanes and rolling hills in order to view a number of breathtaking villages. Duration: 20 minutes Stop At: Barham Barham You will take in the delightful village of Barham with its rolling hills newly planted vineyards and quaint narrow street. You will pass the 13th century church of St John the Baptist with its green copper spire quaint Kent peg tiled cottages and impressive views over the valley below. Duration: Not Available Stop At: Bishopsbourne Bishopsbourne After Barham you will head towards Bishopsbourne which is located within the Kent Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. You will pass the elegant stately home of Bourne Park which the composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart visited in 1865. Duration: Not Available Stop At: Patrixbourne Patrixbourne Your guide will then take you through the historic village of Patrixbourne with its particularly fine Norman church. Built of flint and stone from Caen in France this pretty church is heavily influenced by French decorative practices. Your guide will point out a glorious south doorway in the Norman style and a wheel window in the east end which date from the late 12th century. Duration: Not Available Stop At: Canterbury Canterbury Your guide will then