It wasn't actually a family day out for us this time, it was Day One of our school trip to London so I was visiting with a coach full of 11-14 year olds. I was still wandering around with my mum-head on though and will be seriously considering coming back to Rochester with the Madhouse Family in tow next time.
We started off visiting Rochester Castle and I was impressed at how well preserved it is. The outer walls are almost non-existent now but the keep is totally intact so you get a really good feel for how it was all those years ago. Be warned, there are a lot of steps and many of them are dingy, narrow, spiral staircases so elderly people or those with toddlers will have problems because it's energetic climbing, even without mobility issues or a toddler to carry ! The kids loved exploring though, shooting off down tunnels and reading the numerous informative boards which are bilingual English/French. You can go down passages that take you around the entire circumference of the keep and it's quiet enough that you get the feeling that you're discovering unchartered territory, rather than just following a herd of noisy tourists. Great news for teachers is that school visits are free too. After a quick trip to the gift shop, we had a well earned rest and ate our packed lunch in the castle grounds.
We didn't go there but literally just opposite the castle is Rochester Cathedral, which looks well worth a visit too. This photo is taken from the castle grounds.
Next stop was the Guildhall Museum, just a short 10-minute walk from the castle. I have to admit, I'm often worried that kids will find museums boring and - if I'm honest - I sometimes find them quite boring myself.
No need to worry with the Guildhall Museum though. It documents the life and times of Charles Dickens, but the best part of the museum is the part that deals with the Hulks (prison ships, not angry green monsters !). The rooms have been transformed into very realistic and atmospheric mock-ups of the boats.
The funniest part was one of the displays on the lower deck where you are invited to look into a gloomy glass window. Every single group of kids jumped out of their skin when a little plastic spider came down in front of their eyes ! The museum is split into two buildings separated by a little courtyard. We spent about 45 minutes in there but you could spend longer, if you looked at everything in detail and watched the videos. The best part is, it's totally free so even with young kids, it's worth a flying visit to check out the floating hulks part.
Our final visit was to Dicken's World, which is just opposite Chatham Historic Dockyard. I wasn't sure what the younger kids, who haven't studied Dickens, would make of it but everybody loved it. There is a central courtyard, surrounded by a mock-up of various Dickensian shopfronts with various people wandering around in period costume. You can visit the different attractions in whichever order yu like, which is handy because there are lots of school groups running around. The best bits, according to the pupils (and I have to say I agree with them), are the 4D film about Dickens' travels, the olde-worlde schoolroom, the Haunted House and the Boat Ride (prepare to get wet and sit at the front to avoid the worst of the splash, or buy a poncho at the gift shop !).
We spent two hours and could easily have spent longer, especially as the kids would have loved an extra half hour to go back on the boat ride and the haunted house !
Great news is, it's just next to a retail park so there is ample parking, even for a coach, and you can finiush off with a quick look around the shopping centre next door. There are a selection of outlet stores, including Cadbury's World outlet store where you can bag yourself a bargain buying chocolate right on its sell-by date or mis-shapes ! The Works book store is also definitely worth a look. Upstairs you'll find fast-food or there are a couple of restaurants just outside.
I'd never been to Rochester before and was amazed at how much there was to discover, so I'm sure we'll be back !
star rating : 4.5/5
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I have to say that castle and Dickens World look fabulous, shame I don't live near enough to visit
ReplyDeleteIt does look like a great day out. Looks like you could easily spend all day there!
ReplyDeleteThis looks great fun! My daughter's just done Oliver! as their school play so she'd love to go here. I think a trip will have to be made - thanks for the excellent review.
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