Outdoors & Nature

Ideal for a sunny day. And for a cold rainy day: "There's no such thing as bad weather, only unsuitable clothing".

St Pancras: the Kent coast by fast train

The fast line: Folkestone in under an hour, Dover's cliffs and Canterbury in a little over, Margate and Broadstairs in an hour and a half.

Day trips by trainCountrysideSeaside

Small fishing boats and dinghies moored in a tidal harbour at low water, with the harbour wall and a lighthouse beyond and gulls on the water. — Folkestone harbour, under an hour. Photo by Tim Sheerman-Chase, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The Turner Contemporary's white ridged gallery blocks beside the sea on a bright day, with people on the steps and deckchairs on its terrace. — Margate's Turner gallery, on the harbour. Photo by DeFacto, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Broadstairs' curved sandy bay full of parasols and sunbathers, with houses on the cliff, a stone jetty and the sea beyond under high cloud. — Viking Bay, Broadstairs. Photo by Bex.Walton, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

A path along a lake in a park with autumn trees on the far shore, two people walking beside the water in sunshine. — Verulamium Park, St Albans, on Thameslink from the other side of the station. Photo by Andy Beecroft, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

A stone trig point on a hilltop in snow, with shafts of sun breaking through cloud over a white valley and hills beyond. — Mam Tor in the Peak District, two hours. Photo by Mark Rickaby from Nottingham, United Kingdom, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The high-speed trains from the far platforms of Barlow's train shed reach the Kent coast faster than anything else in London: Folkestone and its harbour arm in under an hour, Dover for the cliff path in a little over, Canterbury in the same, and round the coast to Whitstable, Margate's sands and Turner gallery, and Broadstairs. From the other side of the station Thameslink runs south to the Downs and Brighton and north to St Albans, and the East Midlands trains reach the edge of the Peak District in two hours. Come early: the station is worth the time.

Where: Euston Road, N1C 4QP

Google Maps visitkent.co.uk

Trains from early morning until after midnight

Submit a correction for this listing.

Data is compiled from public sources including OpenStreetMap, under the ODbL. Hours change often, so check before making a journey.