Top Things to do in Rochester
The 5 Best Historic Sites in Rochester, England
Discover the best top things to do in Rochester, United Kingdom including Rochester Cathedral, Eastgate House, Six Poor Travellers House, Restoration House, Cliffe Fort.
Restaurants in Rochester
1. Rochester Cathedral
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,131 reviews
Growing in Christ since AD 604. This is England's second oldest cathedral. We are home to the Textus Roffensis, the only existing copy of the first code of English Law. Dating from 604 AD, this is the second-oldest cathedral in England.
Reviewed By 819stephanieo - Rochester, United Kingdom
Rochester Cathedral is such an interesting place to visit. It is full of history and has lots of information to read and learn about it's past. Even though it is a very popular tourist attraction in the area you ca always find a quiet space to sit and be with your own thoughts. The ladies chapel and the gardens are a favourite place of mine & my husband's to just sit quietly, light a candle and escape from the hustle and bustle of life. The team of volunteers are brilliant, very friend and always happy to help or talk about the cathedrals rich history. There is a great programme of events throughout the year, they are very popular so best to book tickets. The refurbished vaults are very impressive and a great space to have a coffee.
2. Eastgate House
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 56 reviews
An Elizabethan Town House in the heart of Rochester. Recently re-opened after 13 years, now inviting visitors to learn about the history of this magnificent building. From a family home to a Victorian School this house has many tales to tell.
Reviewed By 864sarahe
My husband and I live in Kent and we love occasionally coming to Rochester as it’s so beautiful and filled with a lot to do. Luckily, my in-laws live locally and treated us to the Saturday Dickensian Christmas market and it didn’t disappoint. Part of the scheduled programme was a stop off here to listen to Father Christmas read a story and it was wonderful. The house itself is beautiful and I must admit, rather ashamedly, we didn’t get to spend much time taking in the history as our four year old was dragging us round afterwards in search of the wooden mice that feature in the story and are dotted about. Finding them was a great way to get her involved and she was awarded a little badge at the end. What was really lovely was Father Christmas was dressed in his original green garb, he was absolutely charming and because no one was there, followed us round and gave us helpful tips as to the rodents location. The house was fantastically decorated and everyone was so nice. We couldn’t believe, given how busy the town centre was, it was so quiet! If they do it again we will be going back. Thank you.
3. Six Poor Travellers House
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 210 reviews
Also open some weekend during winter.
Reviewed By LadyGreenbaum - Rochester, United Kingdom
(Click here to read la première partie) https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowUserReviews-g635679-d2433291-r723429508-Six_Poor_Travellers_House-Rochester_Kent_England.html?m=55593 ‘Watt(s)’ the Dick’ens is going on at the poor travellers’ house again - I hear you ask! The must see 6 PTH has undergone a cabinet reshuffle (literally) that’s ‘Watt’, which makes this 16th Century historic site well worth a 2nd visit & then some!! A fascinating alms house situated in ‘The silent High Street…’ ‘in the ancient little city of Rochester in Kent’ visibly inscribed, inter alia, in the annals of history and immortalised in Dickens’ very own short story ‘The 7 Poor Travellers’. However, far from being relegated to the annals of history, the ethos behind the 6 PTH has never been more relevant today! EXHIBIT: Enter Stage left or rather through ‘the quaint old door... (an arched door)’ ‘and… ben(d) [your] head, and [descend] down two steps into the entry.’ ‘Watt’ did the 21st Century ‘Lockdown’ and its mantra ‘We’re all in this together’ associated with the virulent strain of COVID-19 (already added to the OED) show us? Namely that ‘It is a time…when want is keenly felt’. Never has the chasm between ‘A Tale of Two Cities’ been more evident - the pandemic having given rise to an unprecedented number of calls for help on an ever dwindling charitable purse with ‘Many thousands…in want of common necessaries’ – to which the ‘Watts’ Charitable arm and its 6 PTH are no strangers, having seen it all before, especially during the 1630s and 1902 plagues and everything else in between. The paradox is simply, that in the midst of the health crisis, humans need connection with each other more than ever! Once again the Watts Charity continues ‘to execute in no niggardly spirit the intentions of Master Richard Watts!” and has risen to the challenge, bucked the national trend and met the ‘Great Expectations’ identified in its mission statement by providing much of the financial assistance needed to remodel the sensory/hydro pool at Abbey Court School, so its S.E.N.D pupils can benefit from a safe, stimulating space in order to understand and feel the freedom of movement that allows them to relate to their environment; to meet the cost for 5 nurses and a palliative care nurse to be trained at the Wisdom Hospice and to help AgeUK (Medway) distribute meals for the elderly in the ME1/ME2 areas, to name but a few! Watts ‘was simply and staunchly true to his duty…’ and I feel certain that both he and Dickens (considered travellers / migrants both) would be proud to see the continuation of the Charity’s ethos resonating through the streets of Rochester today, in what can only be described as some of the hardest social restrictions put in place since the 2nd World War and the effect it has on those who have fallen on ‘Hard Times’. It simply does what it says on the tin! EXHIBIT: Enter Stage right this time – in ‘Watt’ was the original supper room: ‘Lockdown’ also afforded the venerable, passionate Custodians - Elizabeth et al; the time to reorganise the exhibition, which includes many wonderful artefacts from the 6PTH’s golden era, now collated under one roof, as well as a 19th Century register of travellers, which takes pride of place in the adjacent ‘Travellers Room’. Then take a well-earned breather on the garden bench just outside the 2nd and 3rd bedrooms to pause, listen to the audio transcript and reflect on the evocative recollections of travellers experiences; like those of ‘Rags’ who, with britches held up by string, had need of the hospitality offered at the 6PTH after walking all the way from Wales during the 1920s depression, armed only with the vain hope of finding work in the coal mines at Dover, only to return to Wales without any luck! ‘Watt’ better way to while away an afternoon, with the peal of the Cathedral bells and sounds of trickling water never far away! And not forgetting the charm of the physic courtyard garden where 'the...perfumes of the little flower-garden [at the rear] scented the air around’; the fruit, vegetables and medicinal plants all in abundance ‘[shine] in the morning dew…: and the birds [sing]…’ and ‘. . . a very preserve of butterflies as I remember it. . . where the fruit clusters on the[vines], riper and richer than fruit… in any other garden…’ – it’s true, things just grow well here and all evidently a labour of love, for there’s a spirit here which clearly manifests itself through abundance! It’s a haven from the hustle and bustle of modern day life. There is no doubt in my mind that the 6PTH has – in the words of Gerry Rafferty - ‘got it made (yeah) in the garden of England, where the sun comes up to see us every day’! All this and to think, it was at the 6PTH itself, where I rubbed shoulders with Charles Dickens’ great, great grandson, Gerald Charles Dickens, whilst he was filming the latest adaptation of the great man’s work - A Christmas Carol - standing in the very place where Dickens’ himself once stood! So Hear ye! Hear ye! - partake in the latest 21st Century fashion trend and don on that mask, make good use of that antibacterial gel and get thee to the 6PTH – and if the Reader would indulge me a little longer - I may be so bold as to borrow yet another quote from Dickens himself “Do all the good you can and make as little fuss about it as possible.” After all ‘Mankind was [Watts’s] business; charity, mercy forebearance were, all, [his] business’!
4. Restoration House
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 92 reviews
Ancient mansion house in historic Rochester. Just off the High St., this house is like entering into another world. The rooms have an historic ambience, with early surviving paint schemes and original floors, windows and furnished with fine English furniture and portraits. The gardens are exceptionally well maintained in classic English style, with immaculate lawns, yew hedges, topiary, an astonishing geometric parterre. There is a lush cutting garden which supplies flowers for the arrangements in the house. After 7 years of restoration the so called Tudor garden is emerging as an Italian water garden with statues and fountains, the water sourced from the aquifer and recycled through a gravity feed system. This private gem is open to the public on a restricted basis, on Thursdays and Fridays from the end of May to the end of September. If you're in the area (on an open day), make sure you don't miss out. This is a real treat!
Reviewed By 400ahmeto - Rainham, United Kingdom
The tour, that included a visit to the location of the Restoration House, lasted almost 3 hours and run by Shane Waterman. No fixed charge are enforced. Instead voluntary donations is encouraged with emphasis on encouraging participation and learning. Shane is very knowledgeable about Dickens, his art and the area, taking you through a journey of discovery from Dickens humble beginnings to ascension to world fame and fortune. The tour illustrates how Rochester is littered with locations (Restoration House, Eastgate House, Six Poor Travellers House, Minor Canon Row) and names which Dickens took inspiration from using many of them in his works. Shane not only tells you all about Dickens but also illustrates other events and characters that also played a significant role in the development of the Christmas traditions as we know today. All in all a very informative tour of developing cultural traditions, characters and history in time and place. Well worth a go.
5. Cliffe Fort
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 4 reviews
Reviewed By Sidibear - Birmingham, United Kingdom
Firstly, you cannot get into the Fort, its fenced off as its owned by the local quarry. You can walk along the front of it and see the torpedo launch bit but that is about it. Its still a great location for photography though, as just round the corner is a wooden shipwreck and what remains of Nore Fort, bits of jumbled concrete and a complete base of a Manusell Tower. Go prepared for muddy ground and bad weather, as there is no shelter if the weather does turn. Park at the RSPB Cliffe Ponds car park and its about 45 minute walk.
