Day Trip to Rochester from London by Train (Car- Free)

If you're looking for a day trip from London by train that is a hidden gem, Rochester in Kent should be on your list! It's full of quaint houses, is home to England's 2nd oldest cathedral, a castle, and was a favorite of Charles Dickens.Plus, it's very compacts with all the attractions within an (approx) 30 minutes walk from each other & only 37 minutes from St Pancras. This day trip to Rochester from London by train includes a suggested itinerary on how to spend 1 day in Rochester, England.

Rochester, a historic town nestled on the banks of the River Medway in Kent, is a very easy day trip from London. You can reach it getting a direct train from both:

• St Pancras International (37 minutes, direct)
• London Bridge (almost 1h 30 minutes, direct.) Click through for more of the best day trips by train from London Bridge.)

Hence I'm surprised that it's so seldom featured on the list of best London day trips! Definitely somewhat of a hidden gem here.

I'll be honest and confess that I was a little unsure of the town before I visited- parts of Kent can be a little rough (such as nearby Chatham!) and I haven't always felt safe as a solo female traveler in England (thinking of Gloucester)- but it was much better than I had expected. (A little hiccup on the High Street which I'll tell you more about later!)

• 10-1037 am: Train from London St Pancras to Rochester
• 1037- 1045 am: Walk to Rochester High Street
• 1045- 1145: Rochester Castle
• 1145-145 pm: Lunch
• 2-3 pm: Rochester Cathedral Tour OR tour of Rochester (215-345 pm, April- October)
• 3/ 345- 6 pm: explore the town centre
• Dinner or return to London

The Historic Buildings

Rochester is, well, cute! (See for yourself above.)

You'll find plenty of well-preserved historic buildings in the town centre and some independent shops. It has so much history that it is home to the 2nd oldest continuously running school IN THE WORLD- King's School (established in 604 AD.)

In fact, Rochester dates back to Roman times- Rochester was 1 of their most important towns!

Tip: Monday is the worst day to visit as the castle and many shops are closed so it can be rather quiet. If you have a leisurely lunch, and do the Cathedral tour, it should be enough for a half-day trip but you'll be missing out on a lot!

It has a Castle AND Cathedral!

Rochester Castle was built in 1088, after the Norman invasion. It's a stone's throw from England’s 2nd oldest cathedral which is just a short walk from the High Street. (The oldest is located in Canterbury, also reachable by direct train from London, both from St. Pancras and London Bridge!)

I booked a guided tour of the cathedral (Most tours are held at 2 pm but there's the occasional tour around 11 am.) Note that entry to the cathedral is free but there is a cost for the tour (£7.) This is different from some other cathedrals, such as St. Alban's Cathedral, where entry and the tour are both free (with a suggested donation.)

Despite it being Monday (or perhaps because it was a Monday, since almost everything else was closed!) there were quite a few of us on the tour- we were a group of about 10 people.

Our guide, Terry, was very knowledgeable and patient. He pointed out a lot of details that I would not have noticed otherwise!

Fun fact: It is in Rochester Priory that Henry VIII met his 4th wife, Anne Cleves for the first time so the Cathedral sells a lot of related memorabilia. The Gift shop actually has quite a cute collection of souvenirs! We bought some wooden Christmas tree ornaments for £3 each. (The lady at the gift shop was not very friendly.)

The general ticket costs £9.50.

Opening hours: Tuesday – Sunday, 10am and 6pm (last admission 45 minutes before closing.) Closed on Mondays, except on Bank Holiday Mondays, and some special occasions.

Charles Dickens

One of the greatest British novelists, Dickens grew up in the nearby town of Chatham (not that much to see there besides the dockyards to be honest.)

He was very fond of Rochester and even had a house nearby- Gad's Hill Place, where he stayed till he passed on in 1870. (You can take a direct bus from Chatham to Gad's Hill Place, but note the house is not open to the public all year.)

Many of his books refer to Rochester and its surroundings- such as Restoration House in Great Expectations (believed to be the inspiration for Miss Havisham's house) and the Mystery of Edwin Drood etc

For other literary day trips from London, consider Lewes in Sussex and Knole House in Sevenoaks.

Rochester Pier

Nice views stretching out into the estuary and back towards the castle and cathedral but note that the riverside area can be a bit rough.

A FREE guided tour

If you're in Rochester between April to October (or during Christmas/ winter festival), the Rochester society has free guided tours (donations welcome) on Wednesdays, weekends, and bank holidays. (You can also do a self-guided tour if you're there on a different day- click through for more information.)

The guided walking tours leave from the former Visitor Information Centre (95 High Street Rochester, next to Fieldstaff Antiques) at 2.15pm, and last about 90 minutes.

During the Winter Dickens Festival, there is an additional walk at 10.45am everyday, which lasts approximately 45 minutes.

Alternatively, if you're there on Tuesday, Thursday, or Friday, there other options (very good but with a charge):

• Costumed tour of Rochester- it runs every day but Monday.
• After Hours tour of Rochester which runs on some Mondays, and can start/ end at a restaurant or bar of your choice. You can also choose who you want to guide you, such as Charles Dickens' estranged wife or a Napoleonic officer.

We had lunch at Fish at 55 located in the High Street. (Non sponsored- we chose it as we had seen several good reviews. Plus its location was super convenient for exploring the Castle, Cathedral, and town centre!)

The restaurant was beautifully decorated for fall and the service was very friendly. (Only thing is that the sun can get into your eyes somewhat when it's very sunny outside.)

They have a great seafood lunch set (£25-£30) with ample choices. We chose the:

• fish soup starter (See above for the starters)
• prawns starter
• cauliflower and chickpea curry with saffron basmati rice (see below for the mains)
• scallops

All were pretty good but the scallops, in particular, was a stand out dish- the mashed potatoes were so creamy and so good! (Note they also do Asian dishes such as sushi- I did not try those and cannot vouch for them!)

Cost: £63.06 for 2 (starter, main + coffee/ tea)

Note: The bathroom is located upstairs, and the only way to get to it is via a winding staircase, which some people may find a little difficult to navigate.

Did I feel Safe?

I felt safer than I had expected- the town centre is quite well-maintained and not scruffy at all.

Rochester on a weekday was surprisingly peaceful- you mainly see seniors and school kids around. Moreover, most of the key sights are within a compact area, so you don't have to venture far out to more isolated areas.

Despite not seeing any other Asians around, we were enjoying our walk around town till a white teenaged boy swore at us. It was something along the lines of and angry "Get the fuck out of the middle of the footpath."

Note that I was NOT standing in the middle of the EMPTY football- I was walking. Perhaps not as fast as he would have liked, but I was in no way obstructing his path. (It was totally empty all around me and he could have easily gone around.)

Now perhaps this could just be the way the kids these day communicate. However, as a non-white solo female traveler, I do sometimes wonder how far "Get the fuck out of the middle of the footpath" is from "Get the fuck out of my country."

Either way, we decided to stop walking down that part of the street as there weren't many people around, and the incident left us a little uneasy. Hence, we made our way back to the train station to wait for our train back to London. (Earlier, I had mentioned that the Gloucester city centre felt a bit dodgy but nothing of this sort happened there!)

Rochester train station is only about 5-10 minutes walk from the town centre, castle, and cathedral.

It's 1 of the most modern train stations we've seen in Kent! There is a lift to the platforms, and the entrance has lovely high ceilings and glass walls.

It's 37 minutes on the fast train from St Pancras (but there are also slower direct trains taking 1h 30 minutes.) From London Bridge, direct trains take 1h1 minutes to 1h 13 minutes.

Any questions about taking a day trip to Rochester from London? Let me know in the comments!