Romney Hythe & Dymchurch Railway

Heritage and Gardens

There’s nothing quite like a ride on The Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway - so it’s little wonder that this little wonder is one of Kent's top tourist attractions! A journey on one of the small trains of this heritage railway is a unique experience combining years of steam railway heritage with some of Kent's most picturesque countryside.

The natural starting place for a journey on the RH&DR is at its station in the historic and pretty town of Hythe. It’s one of six along the track, which stretches 13 miles across the picturesque Romney Marsh to Dungeness, one of the largest expanses of shingle in the world, a place of other-worldly beauty and a designated National Nature Reserve.

The RH&DR has been drawing crowds since it opened in 1927 and now operates the most complete collection of one-third full-sized steam locomotives in the world. These small but perfectly-formed trains, take just over an hour to complete the full journey from Hythe to Dungeness but there are opportunities to get off and explore along the way too.

At Dymchurch, a five-minute walk will take you to the village centre with its children’s amusement park, shops, cafes and sandy beach. Stop at New Romney Station and you can visit the Model Railway Exhibition, museum and children’s play area. There are cafes at each of these main stations too and special events throughout the year. Visit the RH&DR website for more details.

The closest that the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway gets to mainline services is at Sandling, two-miles from the RH&DR station at Hythe. It’s a 40-minute walk (downhill on the way, uphill on the way back) but there is a bus stop at the station too offering a 10-minute connection to Hythe.