You have to pay to enter here now but for most of my lifetime you never had to. This is a nice little park to visit to get away from the busy city centre. Almost magical because you never had to worry about getting mugged or chewed on by stray dogs. For some reason they could never find it. You can visit the chapel for free if you go for the Eucharist service on a certain day of the week.

Really beautiful and tranquil. We hadn't planned to go here, but were looking for a time filler, wandered into the hospital and were "upsold" a joint ticket. It really was the nicest part of our day. So peaceful, it was impossible to believe there was a bustling city right outside.

Went for a fabulous bat talk in the Franscican Gardens and with Westgate Punts. We were treated to an amazing display of swooping bats in the beautiful gardens and along the river where we learnt about the incredible history of the Franscican Monks who arrived in the 13th Century and treated residents and pilgrims with herbal remedies. Thanks to Shirley who taught us about the bats and how important it is to encourage insects into our gardens and communal spaces to ensure plenty of food for the bats. Shirley's no. 1 fact was that some bat's have been known to live past 40 years old! This was part of the Great Stour Riverfest which is a great celebration of the river going through Canterbury.

A wonderful garden within the centre of Canterbury with a wealth of historic value. The garden grounds are beautifully kept. It is very scenic, whilst walking through and enjoying the fragrant smells, forgetting that just through what appears as a shop front is the high street. Would definitely recommend giving this place a visit