SCHEDULE
Address of festival venue: Canterbury Cathedral Lodge, Cathedral, The Precincts, Canterbury CT1 2EH
Preliminary Schedule: The festival will run from Monday 25th March to Friday 29th March. Each day will be laid out roughly as follows but timings are subject to change:
9.30am – Morning listening session
1pm – lunch break
2pm – afternoon listening session
5pm – Finish listening for the day.
6pm/7pm – Jury (and anyone who wants to join them) will meet in a different location that will be determined nearer the time to discuss the pieces that we heard during the day.
Thursday 28th March will be a half day. On Friday 29th March, an awards evening will take place.
TRAVEL
General U.K travel information:
You will most likely want to buy a return ticket so that you are ready for your return journey from Canterbury after the festival.
Trains:
The easiest way to plan your travel by train is to use a journey planner.
You can find one on trainline here: https://www.thetrainline.com/
Or National Rail here: https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/
It is worth checking for engineering works/strikes before you travel, you can find this information here: https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/travel-information/future-engineering-works/
You can purchase tickets in the apps of Trainline or National Rail or you can use a ticket machine at the station. Buying them online in advance will be cheaper than buying them on the day.
Buses/Coaches:
If you are flying into the UK, there are often buses/coaches from the airport to various UK towns and cities.
You can search for bus tickets to Canterbury by clicking here: National Express Tickets
Travel to Canterbury from London:
Below are some options to get to Canterbury from various London airports as well as how to navigate the tubes in London but please bear in mind that this is just a few options and you can use the train/bus advice above to find the best route for your individual journey
Using the London Underground, “The tube”:
Heathrow to Canterbury by train:
Gatwick to Canterbury by bus:
- You can use contactless on a card or mobile device to tap on/off at the barriers
- If you are using the tube as part of a longer train journey then you may be able to use your train ticket rather than paying for the tube separately
- There are tube maps in every station as well as signs on the walls to the platforms saying which stations will be stopped at
- To plan a journey, try downloading the TFL app to find the most efficient route, however, you can also use google maps for this.
Read this guide for further information: https://www.visitlondon.com/traveller-information/getting-around-london/london-tube
ACCOMODATION
Accommodation suggestions in Canterbury:
To book accommodation, the easiest platforms to use are Booking.com and Airbnb.
– good for finding both hotels and apartments depending on what you are looking for.
– good if you are looking specifically for a whole apartment/airbnb.
Example accommodations in Canterbury:
(prices are subject to change, accurate as of 24.1.2024)
The Victoria Hotel:
59 London Road, Canterbury, CT2 8JY, United Kingdom
£386 for a single room, Sunday 24th- Saturday 30th.
The Coach House:
34 Watling Street, Canterbury, CT1 2UD, United Kingdom
£425 for a single room, Sunday 24th- Saturday 30th.
Canterbury Cathedral Lodge:
The Precincts, Canterbury, CT1 2EH, United Kingdom
£960 double room (2 people), Sunday 24th- Saturday 30th.
Same building as the venue we will be in for the festival.
FAQs:
Are there enough seats for everyone to attend on the last day when the awards are announced?
A. The awards will take place in the same venue at Canterbury Cathedral lodge so there will be enough space for the attendees of the festival to take part.
Will there be a lunch break:
A. Yes, we will take a lunch break of about an hour everyday where you are free to explore Canterbury while having some lunch.