We will be spending a night in the area of Battle after visiting Beachy Head and the actual battle of Hastings site. We had thought about driving on to Rye for the night so as to be closer to Canterbury the next day. However, another option would be to stay somewhere around Battle and visit the Bodium Castle or Sissinghurst Gardens on the way to Canterbury the next day. Any experience with either route? Also, any advice on interesting places to stay in either Rye or Battle?
Posted by
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
4629 posts
We're going to be doing a similar route in September and decided to spend a night in Rye. It's only a 27 minute drive from Battle according to Google Maps so we decided that's not a big deal and we saw this hotel that looked interesting https://www.mermaidinn.com/. Pricey, but thought it may be worth the splurge.
Posted by
Mid-Atlantic area
7208 posts
We did our trip the reverse of you. We spent a couple nights in Canterbury. We then drove over to Margate and Ramsgate before visiting Dover Castle and tunnels and ending the day in Rye. From Rye we visited Battle and the battfield, Bodium and Pevensey Castles, and continued on towards Portsmouth. Pevensey castle wasn’t worth visiting and Bodium castle is best seen from the outside. There is little on the interior. In Rye we stayed at what is now The Lookout Rye. It was the Rye Lodge when we visited.
Posted by
Tunbridge Wells
6113 posts
I live near here so I have never stayed anywhere other than at home.
Bodiam is a lovely setting and we often make a day of it by combining it with the heritage steam railway, the Kent and East Sussex between Bodiam and Tenterden.
Sissinghurst Garden is lovely but can get very busy. You no longer have to pre booked entry times.
Another charming nearby National Trust (NT) property is Bateman’s, in Burwash. It’s a Jacobean house and the former home of writer and poet Rudyard Kipling.
I think that there are good alternatives to Rye that offer a nicer drive between Battle and Canterbury and are better located for what you want to see in the area. Tenterden is a charming small town (also the location of the NT’s Smallhythe Place) with a variety of accommodation options and a good range of cafes, pubs and restaurants.
Cranbrook with its pretty windmill would also be a good option to stay.
The route I would take would be Battle to Cranbrook on the A21 - A229 or to Tenterden via Northiam and Rolvenden. I would then take the road via Pluckley, Charing and Chatham to reach Canterbury.
The Rye to Canterbury drive is through Ashford, a rather dull, large new town.