The James Bond Trail

Sharpen your wits, pick up the clues and follow 007's tracks across White Cliffs Country, for an exhilarating adventure through the many locations in Deal, Dover and Sandwich with Bond connections that are waiting to be explored. Author Ian Fleming had a holiday home at St Margaret's Bay and found inspiration locally when he wrote ‘The spy story to end all spy stories’. He wrote Moonraker at his house on the beach here and many of the locations in the novel are to be found nearby.

Click through to our James Bond story map, created to complement the trail below to help you visualise your journey.

Fleming's road trip

Driving from London to the Kent coast, as Fleming would have done, there are two road trips you can take to celebrate the 007 stories, both converging on St Margaret’s Bay near Dover.

Goldfinger route James Bond drove from London to Sandwich, of course, but here is the reverse - from St Margaret’s, take the A258 via Deal to Sandwich. Follow the A256 to Ramsgate Harbour, then the A253 and A299 to Reculver where you pick up the A2 to Faversham, Chatham and Rochester.

Moonraker route From London, turn off the M20 at junction 8 for the A20. Follow the A252 up Charing Hill to Chilham and take the A28 to Canterbury, then the A2 to Dover.

St Margaret’s-at-Cliffe and St Margaret's Bay

Head through the charming village of St Margaret’s-at-Cliffe and take the winding road (think Monaco!) down to secluded St Margaret's Bay. Moonraker, written in 1955, is largely based here - the former Granville Hotel, now residential flats, was the setting for Bond and Gala Brand's recovery following an encounter with a villain, where they enjoyed fried soles and Welsh rarebits. It is said that both Fleming and Noel Coward frequented The Granville.

At the northern end of the beach you will spot a white house (privately owned) with green shutters. Formerly known as 'White Cliffs', this was once Fleming's weekend and holiday home during the decade in which he wrote wrote about 007. It was here where Fleming's friend Noel Coward - a former resident of White Cliffs and 'sympathetic conspirator' to the romance of Ian Fleming and Ann (née) Charteris - allowed the couple to stay.

Watch the shipping in the English Channel as Fleming would have done and imagine the evil Drax fleeing in his submarine after the Moonraker rocket launch. Take some time to explore the bay. Places to eat include The Coastguard, Britain's closest pub to France, or buy an ice cream or coffee from the kiosk on the beach and enjoy watching the world go by. On your way back up to the village, have a look at delightful Pines Garden.

Dover

Head to the award-winning seafront and the Sustrans Dover Portrait Bench where you'll find Bond's creator, Ian Fleming, immortalised in a silhouette statue.

Royal Café, Bench Street, Dover  Walk along Bench Street, where Bond stopped for scrambled eggs and bacon at the former Royal Café (now an office block, Atina House), referred to in Fleming's stories as Café Royal. 

The Port of Dover  Follow the signs to the White Cliffs of Dover on foot or cycle from the seafront (you can hire bikes from the Click-2-Cycle stop on the sea side of the underpass). Not only will you have a breath-taking view of the cliffs, you will also get a fantastic view of the Port of Dover - a location where filming took place for Diamonds Are Forever.

Dover Castle  Head to Dover Castle to continue the Moonraker journey, the James Bond story in which 007 drives past a ‘wonderful cardboard castle’ and see for yourself if you agree with this interesting description! Although Bond didn’t venture inside, it's worth visiting to explore and climb the Great Tower for a fantastic view of Dover and the surrounding countryside and discover the fascinating history of White Cliffs Country.

The Swingate, near Dover  Carry on past the ‘petrified Roman Candles’ of Swingate Radar Station where you will come to The Swingate. This is said to be the location of the ‘World Without Want’ and it is the scene of a murder in Moonraker. This was where Fleming and Noel Coward would meet, after racing here from London, before heading down to ‘White Cliffs’ in St Margaret’s.

Kingsdown

Along the coast between St Margaret's and Deal is the pretty village of Kingsdown. Fleming describes Drax’s Moonraker research establishment as being ‘located on the edge of the cliffs between Dover and Deal’ and it's easy to imagine it here. Perhaps Drax’s house was one of those in the middle of Walmer and Kingsdown Golf Course - you will find a steep cliff path like the one described at Oldstairs Bay at Kingsdown leading up to/down from the golf course. Wander along to the beach where you will find the Zetland Arms, a fantastic spot to refuel and watch the sea.

Sandwich

Once a bustling and prosperous port, Sandwich, one of the original Cinque Ports, is now said to be 'one of the most well-preserved medieval towns in Britain'. The Goldfinger novel is the one in which Bond drives an Aston Martin DB III to escape London. Set course for Sandwich and his encounter on the links with jeweller, goldsmith and golf cheat Auric Goldfinger.

Royal St George’s golf course

Royal St George’s Golf Club features in Goldfinger as Royal St Mark’s, where Bond plays that classic match with Goldfinger. Fleming himself played golf here for around 30 years, having first become a member in the 1930s, and was elected captain for the club 1964/5. See the venue where the Bond-Goldfinger clash happened, either by walking along the public footpath or immersing yourself in the experience with a round of golf.