Walks you can reach from Birchington-on-Sea by train

Beginner-friendly: Just keep the sea on your left and follow it to Broadstairs.

Coastal: almost all along the coast.

Margate

Broadstairs

Time: 3h–6h

1 lunch spot: the Captain Digby (1h30–3h in)

5 end-of-walk rewards: the Tartar Frigate, the Neptune's Hall, Siam Kitchen, the Magnet Micropub, or the Prince Albert

Warnings: Very popular and busy.

Adapted from: Railwalks.

Similar walk: Slow Ways (inc. GPX).

Recommended: Low chalk cliffs, sandy bays and coves, cliff-top grassland, seaside promenades and historic coastal towns.

Coastal: nine tenths along the coast.

Margate

Broadstairs

Kingsgate Bay: A chalk-cliff cove on the Thanet coast near Broadstairs, framed by a natural sea arch.

Time: 4h30–9h

2 lunch spots: the Royal Victoria Pavilion (30m–1h30 in), or Forts Café (1h30–3h30 in)

2 end-of-walk rewards: the Mechanical Elephant, or the Cinque Ports

Warnings: Very popular and busy. Check tide timings.

Source: Trains2Green.

Similar walks: the Saturday Walkers Club and Walking Post (inc. GPX).

Flat marshland, creek embankments, farm fields, quiet country lanes, woodland and tidal waterways.

Time: 4h30

Warnings: Can be muddy.

Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Easy coastal walk, flat terrain, seaside villages and open shoreline.

Coastal: three quarters along the coast.

Time: 3h30–7h30

Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Similar walks: Railwalks (inc. GPX) and Slow Ways (inc. GPX).

Dickensian Kent and the Medway: Rochester's cathedral and castle, then Ranscombe Farm and Cobham Park to Sole Street.

Woodland: a fifth under tree cover.

The Rochester Cathedral: England's second-oldest cathedral, founded in 604, in the heart of Rochester.

The Rochester Castle: A Norman castle beside the Medway with one of the tallest surviving keeps in England.

The Ranscombe Farm Reserve: A nature reserve near Rochester protecting rare arable wildflowers on the Kent downs.

The Cobham Park: A landscaped Repton parkland surrounding Cobham Hall, with the Darnley Mausoleum.

Time: 3h30–7h

Walk details: Walking Post (tips, photos and local insights).

Flat orchards and fruit farms, tidal river seawall, coastal creeks, mudflats, salt marshes, drainage ditches, dykes, windswept grazing marshes and historic market town streets.

Time: 5h30

Warnings: Can be muddy.

Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

Recommended: Great views of sea. A flat, easy-to-follow coastal walk on a largely concrete path beside the sea and with around 2 km on grass and some steps. Accessible to wheels along much of its length. Follows the Oyster Bay Trail and Saxon Shore Way. There is a section along a road near Westgate-on-Sea.

Coastal: almost all along the coast.

Time: 5h–10h30

Lunch: Cafes and toilets en route.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

Recommended: Mostly tarmac or hard-packed gravel, largely traffic-free and following the Crab and Winkle Way cycle path with a few steps and good bridges over the road. A delightful final stretch alongside the Great Stour through Westgate Gardens into Canterbury. Follows the Crab and Winkle Way; services at Blean can be reached via alternative routes. There is a seat at a church en route for a rest or picnic.

Woodland: a fifth under tree cover.

Time: 3h–6h30

Warnings: One road crossing near the Canterbury end needs more care.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

Recommended: A flat estuary walk along the sea defences, following the England Coast Path nearly all the way.

Coastal: nine tenths along the coast.

Time: 6h30–13h30

Lunch: Only one village stop en route.

Walk details: Railwalks.

Similar walk: Slow Ways (inc. GPX).

Recommended: Lovely views out over the marshes. A lovely, varied route through woods, fields, gentle hills, orchards and a river estuary, with small sections of mostly safe road walking. The first half is farmland over very gentle hills; the second follows the Medway estuary on the England Coast Trail, with lovely views over the marshes and mudflats. Quite a lot of tarmac and with some muddy parts and slanted cycle gates. The estuary section is on the England Coast Trail. Optional detour along a causeway to 'Horrid Hill'. Break points at Borden, Newington, Rainham, Riverside Country Park and the Strand leisure area.

Time: 5h30–11h

Lunch: Break points with pubs/shops at Borden, Newington and Rainham; cafes and toilets at Riverside Country Park and the Strand.

Warnings: Steps, stiles and gates throughout, plus slanted cycle gates along the estuary. A field path beyond Newington was not reinstated across crops. Care crossing main roads.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

Recommended: A flat walk along the Medway Estuary.

Coastal: three quarters along the coast.

Time: 3h–5h30

Walk details: Railwalks.

Recommended: The close up views of salt marshes and mud flats of the Medway and Swale, made all the more atmospheric by the distant industrial structures. A long, three-part coastal and estuary route: first a wide, popular path right by the Medway estuary coastline with great views; then field paths and quiet lanes on higher ground with views inland and across the estuary; finally a freshly opened section of the England Coast Path on the Isle of Sheppey. Some informal/permissive paths, deep ruts hidden under long grass and possible high-tide flooding. Uses the England Coast Path. Salt marshes and mudflats are important nesting sites for coastal birds and rare plants. Can be broken at Rainham, Lower Halstow, Iwade or Swale station; the Sheppey line has five stations.

Coastal: three quarters along the coast.

Time: 6h30–13h

Lunch: Toilets and cafes at the Strand in Gillingham and in Riverside Country Park; pubs on Lower Rainham Road; pubs and shops at Lower Halstow and Iwade.

Warnings: The England Coast Path section on Sheppey had unfinished waymarkers and crosses ground with deep ruts hidden under long grass. Some high-tide saltmarsh paths may flood.

Walk details: Slow Ways.