Isle of Thanet

Introducing Isle of Thanet

You won’t need a ferry or a wetsuit to reach this island, which was swallowed by the mainland during the first millennium as the Watsun Channel dried up. It now forms a perky peninsula jutting out to sea at the far eastern tip of the country. But in its island days, Thanet was the springboard to several epoch-making episodes of English history. It was here that the Romans kicked off their invasion in the first century AD, and where Augustine landed in AD 597 to begin his conversion of the pagans. These days, Thanet’s pretty coastline is home to a string of Victorian resorts that are only invaded by the summer bathing-suit brigade. Walkers can also look to conquer the Thanet Coastal Path, a 20-mile trail that hugs the shore from Margate to Pegwell Bay via Broadstairs and Ramsgate.