Experience the best of Dover

Dover lies where the chalk of the North Downs meets the sea, and on a clear day the French coast is visible across the narrowest part of the English Channel. Dover Castle, which crowns the hill, has a twelfth-century keep built for Henry II, a Roman lighthouse in its grounds and tunnels dug into the cliff that served as naval headquarters during the Dunkirk evacuation. Ferries still leave from one of Europe's busiest ports.

The white cliffs run along the coast on either side of the town, and footpaths follow their tops towards the South Foreland Lighthouse and St Margaret's Bay. Samphire Hoe, a nature park made from rock dug out for the Channel Tunnel, lies at the foot of the cliffs to the west. Dover Museum shows a Bronze Age boat some 3,500 years old, and the Roman Painted House keeps wall paintings from a travellers' inn. Canterbury, Deal and Folkestone are each a short drive away.

Fish and chips are eaten on the seafront, and Kent's orchards, hop fields and vineyards supply the cider, ale and sparkling wine of the county that calls itself the Garden of England. Cliff walks are best on dry days in spring and early autumn, and long summer light lingers over the Channel.