We left Rocco with his favourite dog-sitter and headed off to Rye on the train.

Our first train was from Orpington to Sevenoaks, where we had time to grab a coffee before our next train:

Following the route the Eurostar used to take before the High Speed line was built, we soon arrived at Ashford International – the “International” platforms on the right looking rather neglected these days:

Our little diesel train was waiting for us:

And soon we were heading off across Romney Marsh:

As Rye station is on a single track, the hourly service in each direction arrives at the same time to cross over, so the station was surprisingly busy:

It’s a short walk up the hill into the town

We visited Lamb House, a National Trust property that’s only been open since 2018. An interesting house and lovely gardens:

Then through the cobbled streets and paths to St Mary’s Church:

It was now time for a beer, so we walked down the hill a bit to the Ypres Castle Pub:

Then a quick look at the view from the castle:

We retraced our steps back into town and found another pub (The Standard Inn) for an excellent lunch of fish and chips:

After lunch, we explored the rest of the town on our way back to the station:

There’s a lovely little preserved Signal Box at the station:

After a short wait, the train arrived to take us to Hastings, where we caught a fast train back to Orpington.

A lovely day out!