Folkestone (England)

Advantages: The area is definately seeing a renaissance
Disadvantages: Poor night-life, run down in areas.

...would like to see. Folkestone was my home for a period of my youth. I lived there until I was about 10, then moved back for a short period when I was 18. I know very few people there now, and rarely have any occasion to visit. But visiting this town every few years one thing strikes me, in someways how desperate a state Folkestone was in for a while. Visually little has changed in Folkestone, it's still as pretty as it ever was. But Folkestone seems ...
...------------------------------ Folkestone is on the Kent coast, easily accessible by the M25, the M2 via Dover, and the channel tunnel or ferries from Europe. Signage for Folkestone is starting to get better, there was a time Folkestone could only be found by following signs to "Channel Tunnel". It is a mere stones throw from Dover and the historic and beautiful city of Canterbury. It is on a beautiful stretch of the Kent coast and is a great place ... Read review

Advantages: Traditional. Nice architecture in parts
Disadvantages: Some run down areas,. High unemployment

Folkestone is a very traditional seaside town in Kent which has managed to retain a good deal of its Edwardian charm and yet at the same time provide modern amenities,facilities and entertainment for residents and visitors alike. Perhaps the nicest feature of this coastal town is the Leas, a broad-cliff-top promenade of flower beds and well manicured lawns. Several major entertainment places are also to be found along this pleasant promenade including ...
...lad on day trips To Folkestone from my home town of ashford. Shopping in Folkestone is quite reasonable although certainly not outstanding. There are several deparment stores and branches of the High Street multiples. It does not compare,however, with Canterbury whilst nearby Ashford has also eclipsed Folkestone as a shopping centre. Dining out in Folkestone is a breeze for a town of its size it does have a surprisingly large number of good restaurants,including ... Read review

Advantages: Great fun for the whole family
Disadvantages: car parking

I haven't been to Folkestone for years but over the weekend we ventured down there and I wondered why we don't come here more often. It is easy to get to buy car although once you get there it is difficult to park. We drove around for the best part of an hour so be prepared to wait! It was also quite expensive so if you can get there by train or bus, that could be your best bet. Once parked there is quite a choice of things to do. Every Sunday and ...
...for a bit. Folkestone also boasts a Victorian cliff lift. Its probably not a good idea if your scared of heights as it does make some terrible noises but its very cheap and well worth the experience. The main beach in Folkestone is pebbley but if you follow the harbour around, there is a lovely sandy bay. The only thing with this is that the Sea Cat is docked just around the corner and if the tide is in, you ae warned to leave the beach as it does ... Read review

Advantages: Peaceful empty beaches, no queue for an ice cream!
Disadvantages: not much ambience, without others there!

Folkestone is a seaside resort in Kent (next to Dover) I was born in Folkestone and grew up there.The town I remember in the late sixties and most of the seventies was a scenic,interesting and exciting place to be. There is a large sandy beach, a pebble beach that seems to go on forever and a more rural beach at the bottom of a cliff with exposed tree roots and fossils in the soil, you have to climb down the cliff to access this area. There is ...
...man-made caves. The Folkestone of today has been allowed to die. In the eighties I heard a local councillor say he didn't think Folkestone was a tourist town anymore. How can this be with so much for visitors to do? I went back to Folkestone last year, in the summer, there was no one about. The local traders are struggling to make a living. Most of the picturesque cobbled street leading to the town centre has been allowed to close down. So, if ... Read review

Advantages: easy routes to greater things
Disadvantages: derelict buildings

Having lived in Folkestone for the past couple of years, I and many of the other residents have watched this town decline rapidly no longer is it this the place that was once visited by Queen Victoria, the edwardian houses are derelict and crumbling, the shop owners are departing rapidly. The harbour that once thrived with people travelling to France for the day is now deserted and looming through the fog desperatly seeking salvation gone has the ...
...and you can join the Eurotunnel or 20 Minutes up the motorway and you come to Ashford once a dying town now thriving thanks to McArthur Glen shopping Outlet. In summary it feels like Folkestone is now a temporary stopover spot for greater things and it is sad to watch. ... Read review

Advantages: Fast connections to France.
Disadvantages: None.

...I have only used the tunnel once, but was so impressed with it that I would use it again. The main terminal is at Kings Cross, although you can pick it up again at Folkestone before leaving England for France. There are regular trains going in both directions, but of course you have to book as it is a popular route for travelling on now. I was impressed by how smooth the journery was, and although I knew it only took just a little more than half an hour to cross the train seemed a lot faster. I was impressed by its cleanliness, and the fact that its employees seem to take extra care - both of the train, but also more importantly of its passengers. They are polite, and are always willing to help in any way they can. Whether it be to ask something simple like where the toilets are, or something a little more profound - just ask them... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average not helpful

Advantages: Beautiful places to visit
Disadvantages: Not good for teenagers

...Ok...so I have lived in Hythe all my life so this review should be pretty accurate. Hythe is a very very small town in te South East of England near Folkestone. First things first it is not a place to take teenagers as they will get emensly bored, but there is plenty for the more mature. There is a lovely beach (shingle and not sand however), which does get very packed in the summer time and is usually very clean (there is a dog ban in the summer). Best tip for ice cream head along the prom towards the Imperial Hotel and there is an ice cream van there called Mrs Rios and the ice cream is lovely! There is the famous (supposedly) crypt in Hythe, which is very small and cannot take many tourists at once! However, if there is not enough room you can always visit the St Leonards Church while waiting. It is a bit of a trek to get... Read review

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Advantages: Quick, Easy, no walking or stairs for the disabled.
Disadvantages: I can't think of any.

...Well, the Channel Tunnel. Lets start with a bit of history here. Apparently they had been digging it or trying to for far far longer than I can remember, or even my mother who is my travelling companion. According to my mum the original idea was Napoleon's. So, what is it? I have had a look at the website, and read all about it and now I know more than I did just by travelling along it, so in short, Euro tunnel is a long tunnel that goes under the sea joining France to England. There are three tunnels, the English end starts in Folkestone, Kent and the other end is in Coquelles, France, that is near Calais. I didn't know there were three tunnels, usually they only use two single track rail tunnels and the trains go in one direction only, which means you go along one tunnel on the way there and come back on the other tunnel... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful