Westgate Gardens is an excellent place for a peaceful afternoon outing in Canterbury with beautiful views of the River Stour.

seriously though, a nice compact (vertical) place of history- hard to imagine anyone jumping from here, i read about 2 chaps who did, desperate! The menu always changes to reflect what the local producers have to offer, ranging from fresh meats and cheeses to delicious pastries and breads baked in the restaurant’s own bakery. So to round it up, if you fancy a little time out, in a special place with some good history this is the place for you. You can leave your prayer request in the book at the entrance of the church and your prayer request is offered during the 12 noon prayer offering on Thursday.

Apart from Jude and Matt, the staff (which I unfortunately do not know their names) are always welcoming and super kind. It does get crowded but you can relax here and see beautiful flowers, architecture and a lovely little river. Add to this the great Cloister and the Chapter House, where the Benedictine monks assembled daily, and the cathedral seems to become a church of many churches.

The ruins are a really cool piece of history and nice to walk around and explore as much as is allowed. The bathrooms could use a better extraction fan as the mirrors and room steamed up badly after showering. Today, its remains house some interesting history, including being used as a place of hospitality for pilgrims during the Reformation. The breakfast room floor is the best but the view of the market as you are eating or just pondering is fantastic. As people have said it is an old building so it is uneven in places,maybe not ideal for those with mobility problems.

I had the privilege to visit the garden several times while the monks were still living there (up to about 10 years ago) and it was (and is) the most tranquil place you can think of, and STILL just next to the high street. As part of the funding awarded by the Chewing Gum Task Force, signs were also installed to encourage people to put their chewing gum in the bin rather than throwing it on the floor in a bid to prevent it from being dropped in the first place.