No ordinary day by the Seaside
Few towns claim to offer as much as Folkestone. A unqiue mix of heritage, combined with a stunning shoreline, burgeoning creative communities, easy transport links and abundant leisure facilities for all ages, it’s no wonder Folkestone has been named in Sunday Times’ ‘Best Places to Live in 2023’.
Look county wide and Kent has so much to offer – there’s something for everyone. It is therefore no surprise that it has become such a desirable location.
Kent’s Green Landscape
If you’re thinking that Kent is known as the ‘Garden of England’ on account of its miles of countryside and fertile arable land, then you’d be right.
Kent has over 350 miles of coastline, offering a mix of chalky white cliffs, sandy beaches, shingle bays, vibrant coastal towns and glorious views stretching out across the Channel.
Kent is home to a range of national nature reserves and wildlife habitats, offering the ideal place for families, walkers and water sport enthusiasts. The miles of open countryside also accommodate some of the country’s best golf courses. In fact, there are about 100 courses over the county’s green landscape.
Two of these venues – Royal Cinque Ports Golf Club in Deal, and Littlestone Golf Club in New Romney – are championship standard and not much further than a huge tee shot away from Folkestone. Kent’s most famous course, The Royal St George’s Golf Club in Sandwich, has hosted 15 Open championships and is the only South East venue still capable of hosting the world’s oldest golf tournament. Princes Golf Club is another Sandwich-based venue, which has hosted the Final Qualifying for The Open Championship between 2018 and 2022.
A County with heritage
Travel eastwards along the coast from Folkestone to encounter some other other well-worth-a-visit Kent seaside towns, namely Sandwich – it has a must-see Roman fort and ampitheatre. Whilst a few miles west of Folkestone you’ll find Port Lympne – the county’s largest wildlife park has 600 acres of ‘Kent Savanagh’ for the exploring.
The historic city of Canterbury is a mere 30-minute drive from Folkestone. Famed for its top-class universities, Canterbury is also where The King’s School, one of the country’s leading co-educational boarding schools, inhabits hallowed space within the Precincts of the city’s celebrated cathedral. Non-UK students in search of a first-class education are also extremely well catered for in Canterbury, with an attached prepartory establishment for students aged 13-to-16 hoping to enter a top boarding school.
Other historic landmarks that populate Kent include Leeds Castle, a fortress rich with history. Walk around the grounds, explore the beautiful gardens and maze, or take a ride on the zipewire, this is a perfect day out for history-enthusiasts and adventure-seekers alike.
The town’s changing face
Now, take a walk through the cobbled streets of Folkestone’s Creative Quarter to see how an eye-opening array of shops, bars, restaurants, galleries and studios have brought a modern, artisan edge to the town centre’s stately infrastructure. Then drop by the Folkestone Quaterhouse, one of the town’s newest performance venues, and check out its refreshing roll call of music, dance and comedy acts.
Folkestone attracts sightseers from around the world, with international visitors taking great delight in their discovery of a town drenched in old-English charm but pulsing with a very modern vibrancy. As well as the Leas, Folkestone is adorned with a promenade that extends out to sea. Formerly a ferry port, the Folkestone Harbour Arm is another of the town’s must-see hospitality hubs. Its redevelopment as a lively, quirky hive of visitor-friendly activity was funded by local businessman Sir Roger De Haan. A leading face for change in Folkestone. Boasting pop-up and traditional bars, an outdoor cinema, snack and fine-dining eateries.
‘Rocksalt’, the Harbour Arm’s architectural jewel, is typical of the town’s restaurants for its delivery of dishes created using locally farmed produce and fish caught from the surrounding deep blue sea. For a less grand, but even more authentic way to savour Folkestone’s piscine delights, Little Rock serves seafood supplied direct from trawlers operating out of Folkestone harbour and nearby Hythe Bay.
Sir Roger De Haan was also responsible for siting the world’s first multi-storey skate park in Folkestone. ‘F51’, a stunning multimillion-pound tower of energy, opened in 2022 to community and county acclaim. The three-tier action station contains 2,100m2 of skateable surface, with climbing and bouldering spaces also available, perfect for a weekend activity.
When the weekend is over, parents will be delighted to send their children to one of the many excellent schools Folkestone has to offer. Two of the town’s primary schools and two of its secondary schools achieved an ‘Outstanding’ rating in the government’s latest Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) report. This accolade, the highest achieveable Ofsted rating, was also attained by two Folkestone nurseries: Castle Hill Village Nursery, and Shorncliffe Nursery.
We now direct you to Folkestone’s beautiful Leas. Situated on the town’s western cliff top, the mile-long promenade is a walker’s paradise. The Leas is where gorgeous gardens lay and spectacular sights out to sea add to a blissful open-air experience. Take the steps to the Lower Coastal Park and wander along a zig-zag path lined with pine avenues and gardens, and as the beachhead approaches, look out for the Southeast’s largest free adventure play area, the amphitheatre, and breathtaking wildlife.
By then, you may have concluded that Folkestone is no ordinary day by the seaside.
We’re delighted to announce the opening of our Marketing Suite to promote the landmark Leas Pavilion residential development on Folkestone seafront.
Come along and discover how you can take this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to own the coastal property of your dreams.
Feel free to contact us; our team is here to help and we will gladly answer all your questions.
Please find us here:
Leas Pavilion
Marketing Suite
97 Sandgate Road
Folkstone CT20 2BQ
Call or email to book a one-to-one appointment with a member of our sales team
The Leas Pavilion lounge, restored to its 1902 former glory, is a rare example of a Grade II listed purpose-built Edwardian tea room.
With its ornately moulded ceilings, elegant galleries, the grand imperial staircase and a sprung dance floor it has been the favourite local venue for culture, art and leisure for over 100 years. Today, we proudly incorporate this former tea room into an avant-garde nine storey residence with 91 luxury sea view apartments.
By combining traditional English heritage with modern architecture from Hollaway Studios, we are able to offer a highly desirable prime seaside location with stunning ocean vistas, grounded in the deep roots of the area’s local history.
All this with high-speed access to Central London and an entry point to the Channel Tunnel just a stone’s throw away; the whole of Europe is at your doorstep.
