Affordable days out this summer

Title photo credit: Coxhill Camping.

Here are loads of ideas to help you plan memorable but cheap days out in the Dover, Deal and Sandwich area. From fascinating museums to brilliant events, there are plenty of ways to keep children entertained this summer that won’t put a strain on your budget.

Fabulous farm visits

Explore ancient woodland, meet Fred the donkey and have fun in the natural play area at Little Farthingloe Farm on the outskirts of Dover. There’s also a farm shop, bakery and café on site.

Visit Solley’s Farm in Ripple for tractor rides (daily, depending on the weather) from 11am until 3.30pm, for £3 per person (under 3s free), the Maize Maze open from 10am to 5pm, £3.50 per person, under 3s free. The Ice Cream Parlour opens from 10am to 5pm. They have a super summer bundle for just £7.50 per person which includes the Maize Maze, a tractor ride and an ice cream!

Felderland Farm near Sandwich is famed for its fantastic pick-your-own fruit, and with a café, picnic and play area and lunchtime pizza wagon at weekends, you can easily spend a few hours here. A Wildlife Sunflower Trail is also now open. Please note that this is not a pick-your-own sunflower field (sunflowers will be available to buy from the shop, subject to availability). If that wasn't enough, you'll be able to meet Tiny Hooves Therapy Goats on Thursday 13, 20 and 27 August (£7 for 1 adult & 1 child, £5 per extra person). The farm is open Tuesdays to Sundays, plus Bank Holiday Monday, from 9am to 4pm, and until 7pm on Wednesdays (until 30 August).

Memorable museums

Head back in time at the fantastic museums in the district (most are free to enter), including:

• Deal Museum, open Fridays to Sundays, full of fascinating local history, including a dressing-up area for younger children. FREE entry.
• Dover Transport Museum, open on Wednesdays and Sundays, home to transport of all kinds, model railways, vintage street scenes and loads more.
• Dover Museum, open every day, where you can see a life-size polar bear and the oldest-known seagoing boat in the world! FREE entry.
• Kent Mining Museum at Betteshanger Park, open Wednesdays to Sundays, tells the story of mining in Kent with immersive exhibitions. FREE entry.
• Sandwich Medieval Centre on Sandwich Quay, open Thursdays to Sundays, is packed with medieval things to do, including trying on armour! FREE entry.
• Battle of Britain Memorial at Capel-le-Ferne, open daily. Learn about the brave pilots of the Battle of Britain, with aircraft, an interactive exhibition and more.
• Sandwich Guildhall Museum, open Wednesdays to Sundays, displays an original Magna Carta, Roman artefacts and local history artefacts. FREE entry.
• Roman Painted House in Dover, open Thursdays to Sundays from 10am to 4pm. Astonishing remains of a Roman hotel and Saxon Shore Fort wall. FREE entry.

Fantastic family-friendly events 

There are loads of events taking place during the school holidays so be sure to check out what's on and book where necessary. Keep an eye on our What's On section and sign up for weekly What's On updates. Those marked with * are free entry.

• Summer Holiday Storytime at 11am on the Oval Lawn at Walmer Castle & Gardens on Wednesdays 22 & 29 July and 5, 12, 19 & 26 August. Stories suitable for ages 0-10 but all are welcome. Included in day ticket or membership.
• Deal Carnival & Regatta Week* – various free fun events from 25 July to 1 August.
• Models & Miniatures at Dover Transport Museum from 25 to 26 July.
• Joey Children’s Entertainer Show* in Dover Market Square from 11am to 1pm on Saturday 25 July.
• Family Funfair on Walmer Green from 29 July to 2 August.
• Get Creative!* Family-friendly art and craft activities at Maison Dieu on Wednesday 29 July 1-3pm and Wednesday 19 August 1-3pm. Free, drop-in activity for families with children aged 12 and under.
• Big Ideas Family Festival* at Riverside Gardens, Biggin Hall and Maison Dieu in Dover from 10am to 4pm on Saturday 1 August. A free drop-in event.
• Unlocking Dover Gaol – a family experience on Monday 3 August and Sunday 9 August from 10.30 to 11.30am. Tickets are £12 adult + 1 free child
• Sunday Funday* at Fort Burgoyne, Dover – the White Cliffs Countryside Partnership Summer Festival from 11am to 3pm on Sunday 2 August. Free event, free parking.
• Summer Safety Events* - come along and find out how to keep safe at the seaside this summer. Dover seafront on Tuesday 4 August 11am to 1.30pm and Deal Pier on Tuesday 11 August from 11am to 1.30pm.
• Dover Dinosaur Day* – the big one! A fantastic free day out for all the family in Pencester Gardens, Dover. Giant dinosaurs, fascinating dino facts, arts and crafts and much more. Wednesday 5 August from 10am to 3pm
• Revel Puck Circus comes to Deal from 6 to 16 August with a spectacular family show. Tickets from £10 on the opening night to £28.90 (best seats at peak time).
• Heritage Sprint (Kent’s biggest biking event) at Betteshanger Park on 8 and 9 August. Children under 16 go free.
• Culture Camp* at Dover Museum – create your own immersive artworks using photogrammetry and VR painting on 12 and 13 August from 10am to 2pm. For ages 8-13, free to attend but booking is essential as places are limited.
• The Wizard of Oz at Goodnestone Park Gardens. Bring a picnic and enjoy the performance in the beautiful grounds. 12 August from 2 to 3pm.
• Boonies Big Day Out* at Betteshanger Park on 15 August from 10.30am to 6pm, free to attend, £5 per person for unlimited access to the obstacle course.
• Nao Victoria at Dover Harbour – a chance to board a replica of the first ship to circumnavigate the world! From 21 to 31 August, 10am to 8pm. Book in advance for discounted price - £10 ages 10 and over, £5 ages 5-10, £25 family (2 adults and 3 children).
• Farthingloe Family Music Festival at Great Farthingloe Farm, Dover on 22 August from 12-9pm. Live music, fairground, food and drink and much more. Tickets are £12 adult, £6 under 16s, £28 family (2 adults, 2 children), under 2s free.
• Let’s Go Fly a Kite* at South Foreland Lighthouse on the White Cliffs on 23 August from 10am to 4pm. Kent Kite Flyers will be giving demonstrations throughout the day.
• Kent Miners’ Festival* at Betteshanger Park on Sunday 23 August from 10.30am to 4pm. Music, food, activities, vintage vehicles and more. A free fun day out for all the family.
• Walmer Lifeboat Station Open Day* on Sunday 29 August from 10am to 4pm. Come and meet the dedicated volunteers and see the lifeboats up close. Free drop-in event.

Perfect picnics

A couple of miles outside Dover you'll find Green Flag Award-winning Kearsney Parks with beautifully landscaped gardens and a fantastic play park and café – a lovely place for a picnic.

Borrow kites from the South Foreland Lighthouse shop on the White Cliffs. You’re welcome to bring a picnic – there are plenty of benches and lots of space to spread your blankets to enjoy a picnic with your family with some awesome views. You can also take a fascinating guided tour of the lighthouse - free for National Trust members or £8 adult, £4 child (under 5s free), £20 family (2 adults, 3 children).

The Butts in Sandwich follows the old town walls. Popular with locals and visitors, this is a lovely spot for a picnic while visiting this lovely old town.

Please take your rubbish home with you or put it in the public bins. Thank you.

Summer savings at English Heritage

To help celebrate the Great British Summer, VAT on family days out has been cut from 20% to 5% until 1 September. English Heritage is passing on every penny of savings to you, reducing the price of admission to the castles at Dover, Walmer and Deal.  

You can also get 25% off an annual English Heritage membership and spend your Great British Summer exploring the underground tunnels of Dover Castle, the gardens of Walmer Castle and Deal Castle’s dungeons. There are plenty of incredible historic places right here. Join English Heritage | English Heritage

Brilliant bike rides

Cycle along one of the many fantastic routes in the district – the well-signed National Cycle Network Route 1 takes you past three castles and a Roman fort! Cycle a short section of the route according to your ability: the flat, gentle route along Deal and Walmer seafronts, the slightly more off-road route from Deal to Sandwich or the more demanding, steep climb from Dover up to the White Cliffs.

There are many other perfect places to explore on two wheels and a 3km stretch of traffic-free, safe cycling at Betteshanger Park is perfect for younger children. The park is free to enter and cycle around but there are car parking charges.

Wonderful wildlife

Visit the wildlife haven at Samphire Hoe and immerse yourselves in the beauty of this rare chalkland nature reserve at the base of the world-famous White Cliffs. A lovely place for a walk and picnic (at tables by the visitor centre).

Other nature hotspots for wildlife in the area include Sandwich Bay Bird Observatory (where there are family events taking place throughout the summer), Gazen Salts and Monks Wall Nature Reserve.

Rock-pooling on the beach is one of the best ways to spend hours in the great outdoors. Inexpensive and lots of fun, but please keep an eye on the tide. The best beaches for rock-pooling here are at St Margaret's Bay, Kingsdown and Shakespeare Beach, Dover. 

Sleep under the stars

Wake with birdsong and fall asleep under the stars, find the perfect stick to toast marshmallows and make s’mores! There’s no better way to make great memories and experience the fresh air and special outdoor places here than to bring camping gear and pitch a tent at one of our fantastically located campsites.

Get back to nature and camp in farmers’ fields or take the luxury option and try glamping instead – we have campsites in the countryside and campsites overlooking the sea. And if sleeping under canvas isn’t your thing, there are holiday parks with static caravans for hire. See below.

Travel tips

At just over an hour from the capital by highspeed train and with great connections from other stations in Kent, Dover, Deal and Sandwich are easy to get to by rail. Plus, with southeastern’s Kids for a Quid and GroupSave offers, travelling by train is a great way to explore the area.

The road network is also well connected and the emergency services work hard to keep the traffic flowing around the busy port area at Dover. Listen out for up-to-date travel news and leave plenty of time for your journey in busy periods. See below for more information.