Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Down House
HISTORIC HOME Naturalist Charles Darwin lived here for 40
years until his death in 1882. When he moved in he wrote “House ugly, looks neither
old nor new.” Nevertheless, he lived there “in happy contentment” for 4 decades. The
drawing room, dining room, billiard room, and old study have been restored to the
way they were when Darwin was working on his famous, and still controversial, book
On the Origin of Species,
published in 1859. The original landscaping remains, along
with the Sand Walk, the “Thinking Path,” where Darwin took his daily solitary walk.
Luxted Rd., Downe.
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01689/859119.
www.english-heritage.org.uk. Admission £9.30 adults, £7.90
students and seniors, £4.70 children 5-16, £23 family ticket. Apr-June and Sept-Oct Wed-Sun 11am-
5pm; Nov-Dec 20, Feb and Mar Wed-Sun 11am-4pm; July-Aug daily 11am-5pm. Closed Dec 21-Jan 31.
From Westerham, take the A233 several miles north and follow signs for Downe.
Groombridge Place Gardens
GARDEN These formal gardens, dating from
the 17th century but with modern additions, are divided into walks, gardens, and
other experiences. The White Rose Garden is compared to that at fabled Sissing-
hurst, the English Knot Garden is based on panels in the drawing room of an English
country house, and Fern Valley is a forest of huge tree ferns. Children are well catered
for with the Enchanted Forest, full of playgrounds, flowers, swings, and deer, Cru-
soe's World, and Dinosaur and Dragon Valley.
At the heart is a beautiful 17th-century moated manor house. Sir Christopher
Wren is believed to have been involved in its design. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was a
regular visitor to take part in séances, and the manor was the setting for the Sherlock
Holmes mystery
The Valley of Fear.
The gardens are often visited after an exploration
of Knole, near Sevenoaks.
Groombridge.
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08192/861444.
www.groombridge.co.uk. Admission £8.95 adults, £7.45 seniors and
children 3-12, £30 family ticket. (Extra £1 mid-July-early Sept and some peak days). Mid- March-Oct,
10am-5:30pm.
Hever Castle & Gardens
CASTLE Hever Castle dates from 1270, when
the massive gatehouse, outer walls, and moat were built. Some 200 years later, the
Bullen (or Boleyn) family added a comfortable Tudor house. Hever was the childhood
home of Anne Boleyn, second wife of Henry VIII and mother of Queen Elizabeth I.
In 1903, William Waldorf Astor bought the estate and restored the castle, building
the Tudor Village and creating the gardens and lakes. The Astor family's contribution
to Hever's rich history can be appreciated through the castle's collections of furniture,
paintings, and art, as well as the workmanship in the woodcarving and plasterwork.
The gardens are ablaze with vibrant shades throughout most of the year. The spec-
tacular Italian Garden contains statuary and sculpture dating from Roman to Renais-
sance times. The formal gardens include a walled Rose Garden, fine topiary work,
and a maze. There's also a large lake and many streams, cascades, and fountains.
Hever, near Edenbridge.
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01732/865224.
www.hevercastle.co.uk. Admission to castle and gardens
£14 adults, £12 students and seniors, £8 children 5-15, £36 family ticket. Audio tour £3. Daily mid-Feb-
Christmas: Gardens 10:30am-5pm; castle noon-5pm (closes at 4pm Feb, Mar, Nov, Dec). Follow the
signs northwest of Royal Tunbridge Wells; it's 3 miles southeast of Edenbridge, and 30 min. from junc-
tion 6 of the M25.
Ightham Mote
HISTORIC SITE Ightham Mote, dating from 1320, is a gor-
geous moated manor house with lots of Tudor touches such as the chapel with its
painted ceiling, timbered outer wall, and ornate chimneys. You'll cross a stone bridge
over a moat to its central courtyard. From the Great Hall, with its magnificent win-
dows, a Jacobean staircase leads to the old chapel on the first floor, where you go
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