Dover Castle

[FSO Cruiser]

Has anyone been there? Is it worth seeing and how long will it take? Thanks

[shoshona2]

Hi,

 

We were there last August. It is a "must see" as far as my husband (history buff) and I believe. We toured the underground tunnels -- which were dug during Napoleon's days and used during WWII. Go to Frommers.com and Fodors.com and put in Dover Castle in the search mode. It is a guided tour for about 30 minutes with sound effects.

[msiowa]

If you have time in Dover, the castle is a must see. We spent the day before our cruise in Dover, getting there about noon from Heathrow. After dumping our stuff at our B&B, we wandered to the main business area, stopped at an ATM to get some cash, bought sandwiches at Marks & Spencer, ate in the park, and climbed on the hop-on, hop-off bus for a tour of town culminating at the castle.

 

We got our tickets for the tunnel tour which were for about 3:30 that afternoon. We wandered the castle grounds - very pretty and interesting - and headed to the tunnels. They are fascinating. It's amzing what they were doing in them during WWII.

 

We then headed back to town, had dinner at a pub, did a bit of grocery shopping for the ship, and headed back to the B&B and collapsed!!

 

After a very good English breakfast the next morning (yum!) and meeting another couple on our cruise over breakfast, we headed to Constellation for the best cruise ever!!

 

I highly recommend flying to London at least a day early, and Dover is a great place to spend some time before the cruise.

 

Happy sailing!

Joanie

[cadreamer]

WE did the castle also arriving on the hop on hop off bus and wallking down the hill back to town. Taking a taxi to the Castle would have been quicker but we would have missed some of the sights of Dover. I would allow several hours at the castle. We thought we missed some interesting things because we did not have enough time. But, for sure the tunnel tour is the best part and not to be missed. I agree that it is a good idea to go a day ahead and see the town and castle.

[Toots]

MSIOWA - which B&B did you use in Dover? Was there any local transportation to see Canterbury too?

 

Thanks,

Brigitte

[msiowa]

toots

 

We stayed at the East Lee House. (www.eastlee.co.uk) It was very nice and the owners, Patricia and Michael Knight, we very helpful. At most B&Bs in England, check-in isn't until 3 or 4 in the afternoon. We got there around 11. Although our room wasn't yet ready, they let us dump our bags (and boy, did we have bags!) in their dining room and let us keep them there until we left the next morning for the ship. They were helpful with ideas about what to do (although we had that figured out already) and then, the next morning at breakfast, introduced us to a couple who were on the same ship who then became out best cruise buddies!

 

If you want to look at other possibilities, check out www.stayindover.co.uk and click on hotels and accomodations.

 

We hired a private car service (I can't remember which one but we found it here on Cruise Critic) and although we wanted to go straight to Dover, we could have made arrangements to stop along the way in Canterbury or anywhere else (we've spent a lot of time in England and didn't feel the need to do this.)

 

Have a great cruise!! Wish I was going again.

Joanie

[Toots]

We're checking in at the NCL Dream around noon and the ship leaves at 4 pm. Is there time to get back off the ship and see the castle? How far is it from the pier?

[msiowa]

I think that's cutting it pretty close. The castle isn't that far from the ship - probably a 10-15 minute ride by cab. The tunnel tours are by ticket only - we got up there by around 12:30 and had to wait until 3:30 for a tour (obviously, that wouldn't work for you). You could wander the grounds and see some of the other buildings, but you'd want to leave the castle by 3 to be safe. You might ask your cab driver to come get you because I don't remember seeing any cabs when we were waiting for the hop on-hop off bus to get back to the center of Dover.

 

Personally, on your schedule, I'd just get on the ship and explore before sailaway.

 

Have a great cruise!

Joanie

[babylene]

Hi Joanie! I love your idea of spending the first night in Dover. What is the best way to get there from Heathrow? Could you tell us the name of the company you used and the price? Thanks.