Visit Kent

Cutting-edge art, inventive cuisine, funky cultural quarters, chic sleep-spots, super-fast links to Europe

Here, history is rich but the lure of the present is as strong as the pull of the past. One of your days out in Kent could be discovering Margate's Turner Contemporary; the gallery and links with Tracey Emin are transforming the town. Creative and culinary regenerations also ensure pockets of Folkestone, Whitstable, Broadstairs, Deal and Ramsgate now have an arty, foodie vibe.

Visit Kent to discover big skies and wide horizons. A space to re-charge and reconnect. In Kent, coast and countryside are attractions in themselves. Here a glorious 350-mile shoreline frames chalk downland and haunting marshes, hop gardens and oast houses, orchards and farms. Pristine sandy beaches flow towards a world-class icon; Dover's towering White Cliffs are quite simply a must-see sight.

Just 30 minutes from London, Kent is ideal for a weekend break - and sampling something new: spa-soothing; kite-surfing; boutique-sleeping; wave-riding; fossil-hunting; chic-eating. Or rediscovering the delights of the old: exploring quaint villages; building sandcastles; strolling tranquil Downs; tracing marsh-side cycle trails and cliff-top hikes.

This lush landscape is good enough to eat. The bountiful Garden of England overflows with fine produce, from oysters and succulent fish to apples and cherries, hops and fine wines. And everywhere top-notch chefs are casting culinary spells in transitions from sea and furrow to plate.

Scratch the surface and history runs like a rich seam of chalk through Kentish life. The past here is unparalleled. Stunning castles at Leeds, Dover and Hever. Awe-inspiring cathedrals at Canterbury and Rochester. Exquisite historic homes at Penshurts, Knole, Ightham Moat and Chartwell.

Unique heritage sites like The Historic Dockyard Chatham. Wildlife parks at Howletts and Port Lympne. Legendary Kent gardens at Sissinghurst, Leeds Castle, the Secret Gardens of Sandwich and Penshurst Place.  And Kent is good for the brain as well as the soul: all around the county, sprinkled like intellectual confetti, are links to literary and scientific giants: the Charleses Dickens and Darwin.