St Pancras to Dungeness via HS1 and RH&DR

[38Cto15E]

I have travelled over thousands of miles of the UK Rail network over the years but never been on the RH&DR.

When the weather gets a little better I was thinking of getting an EMT from Leicester to St Pancras,then HS1 to Folkestone Central, bus to Hythe and then the RH&DR to Dungeness and return.

Dungeness is an itch that has needed scratching for some time, is there any B&B there or would New Romney be better?

I could probably do the trip in a day but I will probably stay one night around the RH&DR.

If anyone with local knowledge can provide any tips they would be most welcome.
TIA

For anyone reading this, a trip report is available here http://www.railforums.co.uk/showthread.php?t=46952 (moved to new topic)

 

[Clip]

yoru probably best doing the overnight thing as its really nice down there - even the nulcear power station makes the place feel special(im not joking)

http://www.signpost.co.uk/london_and_south_england/romney_bay_house_hotel_kent.htm

Looks like this one is right on the beach would be lovely to wake up too. Or if you dont want remote then just stay back in Folkestone for the night and explore the restaurants there

 

[Railjet]

If you decide to stay in Folkestone, be warned that the choice of hotels is dire, and the place in general is a bit of a dump.

I had to stay in the area for one night about a year-and-a-half ago. I did some research on Trip Advisor and found some horrendous reviews. Here's an example about one hotel (which will rename nameless, but the review is hilarious!):

It's a bit run-down but there again so is the rest of Britain. The food wasn't brilliant - a cross between British Rail circa 1970 and HMP Folkestone - but plentiful and neither under- nor over- cooked. The crockery wasn't clean - many had traces of dried food but at least you had a reminder of what dinner had been. What was noticeable was the fact that nearly all the guests were OAPs and many seemed to be in their late 70's and 80's. And boy could they eat !!! It was like the fall of Saigon in the dining room - anyone faint of heart and not prepared to fight for their space was trampled under foot as the Senior Citizen Army fought for control of the buffet.
In fact, when we had the fire evacuation on Sunday night, I reckoned they could have cleared the place of guests in seconds flat if they put a free buffet in the road outside.

 

[bnsf734]

New Romney has some B&B's and hotels. I have stopped at a B&B there and found it very good. Cant remember the name though. Dymchurch also has some accomodation available. Ashford has some hotels of the Travelodge/Premier Lodge variety.

I can also recommend the RHDR Gala weekend (dates not on website yet but previous years in early May) When I did it a few years ago the final train was powered by all the steam locos!!

 

[Keith Jarrett]

You'll enjoy the RHDR and Dungenesss is a bit special. Personally I cannot get enough of the RHDR or Dungeness.

Remember that Hythe station is about 35-40 minutes walk from Sandling station (sadly HS1 does not stop so you will have to change at Ashford for SET). Or of course a cab; which has to be better than paying for Stagecoach's extortionate buses from Folkestone which do not stop near the station.

Accommodation - Give Folkestone a miss! There are several B&Bs in New Romney or Dymchurch; also some B&Bs along the coast road in the Romney Sands area but these can be variable. But the best B&B that we have used is Pluto which is near to the entrance to the Dungeness Estate - about 20 mins walk from Dungeness Station. Dr Syn's Guest House in Dymchurch should be fine as well. It's run by a lady called Debbie who we used to stay with when she ran a different guest house on the outskirts of Dymchurch. And Dr Syn's is about 2-3 minutes walk to both the RHDR and the sea front.
http://www.romneymarshguesthouses.co.uk/ will help you find places to stay.

Eating out - avoid the Pilot Inn at Dungeness. Slow service and pretty average food. Much better to go to the Britanania or use the RHDR cafe by Dungeness. And there is always fish and chips on the sea front at Dymchurch.

Ticketing - If you are there more than two days, get a weekly season which is about 2.5 times the daily fare. But it can be difficult buying these on gala days although they are accepted.

PM me if you have any more specific questions.

 

[GoByThameslink]

Remember that Hythe station is about 35-40 minutes walk from Sandling station (sadly HS1 does not stop so you will have to change at Ashford for SET). Or of course a cab; which has to be better than paying for Stagecoach's extortionate buses from Folkestone which do not stop near the station.

Hythe station is in the Folkestone PlusBus zone so that's another way to avoid the high fares. There are more buses if you go Folkestone Central Station > Bus Station > Hythe; there is a less frequent direct service, but it goes round the houses

 

[4SRKT]

It's many years since I did the walk from Sandling to Hythe, but it was always pleasant enough on a nice day. Fantastic to get off the CEP there and walk with mounting anticipation towards the miniature magic at Hythe!

Sandling station was great too. A proper Southern country station, with the remains of the Hythe branch and platform still in situ.

 

[bse35]

I went last Wednesday via HS1 to Folkestone Central plusbus (Much cheaper than normal bus fares). Buses leave every 10mins from bay D1 at Folkestone bus station which is a 10 minutes walk from the station. It is a great line and I think gala dates are Oct 1-2 this year. Have a great time.

 

[ji459]

You can buy a combined rail and bus ticket from any Stagecoach bus for £17.

It's a combined RH&DR RomneyRover ticket (which is valid all day on the whole line and costs £15 on its own) and Stagecoach Explorer ticket (which is valid all day on their East Kent and East Sussex buses as well as on local Arriva, Kent Top Travel and Brighton & Hove buses and costs £5.50 on its own).

 

[yorksrob]

Sandling station was great too. A proper Southern country station, with the remains of the Hythe branch and platform still in situ.

There's still a pleasing amount left - including the up platform building and the Hythe branch platform. It looks peculiar now though with high speed trains buzzing past on an embankment.

Sadly no CEP's anymore though