Leeds Castle, Cliffs of Dover and Canterbury Day Trip from London with Guided Cathedral Tour
Overview
- Leeds Castle, Canterbury Cathedral and Dover day trip from London
- Explore Leeds Castle and its fairy-tale moat before the crowds arrive
- Get an exclusive tour of UNESCO World Heritage–listed Canterbury Cathedral
- Drive through Greenwhich and the scenic Kent countryside
- Learn about the sights you see from an expert guide, with personal headphones for easy listening
Why Travelers Choose This Tour
Travel through historical, maritime Greenwich, and glimpse its famous National Maritime Museum, Royal Naval College and 18th-century Royal Observatory, the home of the Prime Meridian, where the world’s time is set.
Then, head into the picturesque county of Kent, and arrive at Leeds Castle: a picturebook, 12th-century castle encircled by a moat and parklands. Head inside and take a private tour before the doors open to the public. Admire the opulent rooms filled with rich furniture, tapestries and artworks, and learn how the castle was once a residence of medieval monarchs. Stroll through the gardens, and perhaps navigate your way through the maze, a puzzle of geometric yew hedges.
Next, drive to the ancient city of Canterbury, home to UNESCO-listed Canterbury Cathedral: a center of Christian worship for nearly 1,000 years. Founded in 597 and rebuilt in the 11th and 12th centuries, this majestic church is one of England’s oldest.
Head into this serene cathedral, and enjoy the special privilege of a guided tour in your large group, as you listen to your guide’s commentary via your headphones. As you explore, learn about the church’s bloodiest hour — the day in 1170 when four knights of Henry II stormed inside and murdered Archbishop Thomas Becket.
Back on your coach, continue through pretty villages toward Dover on Kent’s south coast. Here, snap photos of the famous White Cliffs of Dover. Learn why this site is important to the English, and see England's largest castle, Dover Castle, rising from a hilltop.
Your tour finishes with a drop-off in central London.
Reviews
Viator Traveler's Reviews
Generally speaking the trip is good. The Canterbury Cathedral, which is a UNESCO world heritage site, is very gorgeous and surprisingly you can find some modern decoration inside. The guide Andy Jackson is very knowledgeable. However, the cathedral tour is not a guided one as stated in the description found in Viator web site.
The tour was well organized with knowable lady instructor. The Leeds castle was wonderful and same time we visit there were a flower show which was amazing and the flowers arrangement all over the castle.The only problem was that the tour began at the victoria couch station which is far from the tube station and we needed to walk a lot.
Our guide for the day was okay, but not the best. On the drive we passed, I assume, many points of interest and he didn't point out much. Literally not much in Dover. Canterbury was a big disappointment. It's in bad disrepair and us undergoing renovation so most of the interior and exterior is covered with construction materials. If the tour information had said something about that, I would have picked something else to do that day.
Overall nice way to spend a day out and great way to check a few sights off your list in a day. Really enjoyed leeds castle, lacked a bit of information from our guide before we headed in on the best way to spend our time here though. Cliffs of Dover was nothing spectacular but nice enough to say you saw them. Then on to Canterbury, after this trip I still don't feel I could say I've been to Canterbury, I can say I've been to the cathedral though, which was stunning. Would have loved even an extra 1/2hr to wonder the streets of Canterbury a bit more. My best advice if you're looking to do this trip is to skip the 'recommended' lunch spot, its overpriced and not very good and arrange to meet the guide at the cathedral. Wonder the streets and on the way find somewhere nicer to eat it won't be hard and see a bit more of Canterbury. Overall lovely tour guide and bus driver.
The tour starts with Leeds Castle where there's plenty of time to walk through the castle and then take a picture from the opposite bank to capture the entire castle. Then on to Cantebury where they offer to take you to lunch at your own expense. It's touristy food - fish and chips or pot pie and local ciders and beers. If you skip the lunch, the tour guide can take you directly to the cathedral where you can walk through on your own. You end up missing the tour guide's commentary, but then you'll have time for a fast food lunch on the way back to the bus. On my particular trip, we didn't end up making it to Dover as there was congestion at the Euro tunnel and we couldn't get to the cliffs in time and had to turn back. A nice excursion outside of central London. I hope to make it to Dover some other time.
The trip was fantastic. What really made this trip amazing was Oliver Simmons, our guide. He educated us not only about our tour but London itself. So knowledgeable! Also a huge shoutout to our driver, Steve. Made a special stop at Battle of Britain Memorial. Both of these gentlemen made the trip so memorable.
Our guide was great! He was personable, funny and informative. My comments relate to the pacing of the tour. Leeds Castle and Gardens was by far the star of the show! Leeds is just spectacular and I would suggest allocating more time to Leeds. Canterbury- I would suggest less time. See the beautiful cathedral but spend less time, particularly inside. Cliffs of Dover - little time there and we couldn't see much. I suggest going to a vantage point where the white cliffs are more visible.
First, we were 20 minutes late departing due to disorganization. We were disappointed at eat place. We were at Leeds Castle for about an hour. The castle itself, was not what we expected. The exterior is gorgeous. The interior was modified over the years for the family life and is decorated pretty poorly and not all that interesting. Dover for 20 minutes (standing miles away where you needed binoculars to see it). Canterbury about 45 minutes (they gave us 20 minutes on our own, but that included the 10 minutes it took to get back to the bus.)
The tour guide was not all that knowledgeable. He didn't share a lot of history. Some of what he did share, I know was incorrect. Also, this company allowed one family to bring a 21 month-old on the trip. He was right behind us. The family was amusing him by singing