Walks you can reach from Rochester by train
MapA day hike is just a simple train journey away — plan your next day of green.
Alternatively, view walks directly from Rochester.
Margate to Broadstairs (Kent)
1 hour direct from Rochester.
Beginner-friendly: Just keep the sea on your left and follow it to Broadstairs.
Coastal: almost all along the coast.
Broadstairs (2h45 in)
Time: 4h30 (3h walking, 1h30 lunch)
1 lunch spot: the Captain Digby (1h30 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.
Chilham to Canterbury (Kent)
45 minutes direct from Rochester.
Highly recommended
Chilham (15m in)
Canterbury Cathedral (2h45 in)
Canterbury (2h45 in)
Time: 4h30 (3h walking, 1h30 lunch)
2 lunch spots: Chilham (30m in) — the Chilham Square, or the Star Inn
5 end-of-walk rewards: the Monument, the Unicorn Inn, the West Gate Inn, the Carpenters Arms, or the Old Buttermarket
Warnings: A fifth urban.
Adapted from: The Rough Guide to Walks in London & the South East (3rd edition).
Similar walk: the Saturday Walkers Club.
Ramsgate to Margate (Kent)
1 hour direct from Rochester.
Recommended: Low chalk cliffs, sandy bays and coves, cliff-top grassland, seaside promenades and historic coastal towns.
Coastal: nine tenths along the coast.
Margate (4h30 in)
Broadstairs (1h45 in)
Kingsgate Bay: A chalk-cliff cove on the Thanet coast near Broadstairs, framed by a natural sea arch (2h45 in).
Time: 6h (4h30 walking, 1h30 lunch)
2 lunch spots: the Royal Victoria Pavilion (45m in), or Forts Café (1h45 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).
Faversham to Canterbury (Kent)
30 minutes direct from Rochester.
Recommended: Really beautiful woodland segments and occasional idyllic countryside vistas. The first segment, closest to Faversham, isn't great due to a busy road, but very quiet beyond that. Quiet and isolated.
Woodland: a quarter under tree cover.
Faversham: Very picturesque medieval market town with many interesting shops and historic sites.
Canterbury Cathedral (5h in)
Canterbury (5h in)
Time: 7h (5h walking, 1h30 lunch, 30m break)
Lunch: No lunch venues en route. There's a playground with picnic tables at Chartham Hatch that makes a good stop for a packed lunch.
7 end-of-walk rewards: the Black Griffin, the Lady Luck, the Old Weaver Restaurant, Marlowe's, the Drapers Arms, the Old Buttermarket, or the Shakespeare
Source: Trains2Green.
Similar walk: Slow Ways.
Canterbury Circular via Stodmarsh National Nature Reserve (Kent)
45 minutes direct from Rochester.
Flat Kent countryside, arable fields, woods, ancient villages, oast houses, polytunnel farms and riverside.
Time: 7h (5h30 walking, 1h30 lunch)
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Farningham Road to Eynsford (Kent)
15 minutes direct from Rochester.
Linear middle Darent Valley Path beside the tranquil River Darent, Lullingstone Roman Villa, Eynsford Castle and valley views.
Time: 5h (3h30 walking, 1h30 lunch)
Walk details: Kent Downs National Landscape (tips, photos and local insights).
Farningham Road to Otford (Kent)
15 minutes direct from Rochester.
Ancient woodland, field edges, riverside Darent Valley Path, low hills, chalk downland, quaint villages, golf course and nature reserves.
Time: 6h30 (5h walking, 1h30 lunch)
Warnings: Motocross path closures possible.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Swanley to Sevenoaks (Kent)
30 minutes direct from Rochester.
Linear Darent valley sides on the North Downs Way and Darent Valley Path: three nature reserves including Lullingstone Country Park and Polhill Bank, panoramic Kent Downs views.
Time: 6h (4h30 walking, 1h30 lunch)
Walk details: Kent Downs National Landscape (tips, photos and local insights).
Swanley to Eynsford (Kent)
30 minutes direct from Rochester.
Linear walk into the Darent Valley countryside, with breathtaking views, Lullingstone Roman Villa, the Eynsford Viaduct and the village's humpback bridge and ford.
Time: 3h30 (2h walking, 1h30 lunch)
Walk details: Kent Downs National Landscape (tips, photos and local insights).
Chartham to Canterbury (Kent)
45 minutes direct from Rochester.
Apple orchards, a chalk stream and a cathedral, along the River Stour and the North Downs Way past No Man's Orchard into Canterbury.
Woodland: a quarter under tree cover.
No Man's Orchard: A community orchard of mature fruit trees alongside the North Downs Way.
Time: 4h30 (3h walking, 1h30 lunch)
Warnings: Orchard paths can be muddy; busy road section on the A28.
Walk details: Walking Post (tips, photos and local insights).
Sole Street Circular via the Cobham Park (Kent)
9 minutes direct from Rochester.
Kentish villages, orchards and Cobham Park, past the Darnley Mausoleum, the North Downs Way and historic village pubs.
Hilly: a third on high ground, rising above the surrounding land.
Woodland: two fifths under tree cover.
Cobham Wood and Mausoleum (National Trust; 2h45 in)
The Cobham Park: A landscaped Repton parkland surrounding Cobham Hall, with the Darnley Mausoleum.
Darnley Mausoleum: A grand Georgian mausoleum standing within Cobham Park.
Time: 5h30 (4h walking, 1h30 lunch)
Warnings: Steep climbs; can be quite muddy in winter.
Walk details: Walking Post (tips, photos and local insights).
Meopham Circular (Kent)
15 minutes direct from Rochester.
Chalk grassland, ancient woodland, community woodland, landscaped parkland, wildflower meadows, farm fields, country park and busy road stretches.
The Rochester Castle: A Norman castle beside the Medway with one of the tallest surviving keeps in England.
Time: 6h (4h30 walking, 1h30 lunch)
Warnings: Can be muddy.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).