This guide covers six places in and around Faversham: a heritage centre, a medieval parish church and a brewery tour in the town, a former gunpowder factory on its edge and a marsh reserve at Oare, and the National Fruit Collection at Brogdale. It sorts them by what you want to do and gives the practical detail each owner publishes. The cards below link to each place’s InKent page.
Fleur de Lis Heritage Centre
The Faversham Society’s museum and heritage centre is at 12 to 13 Preston Street. It traces the town from a pre-Roman settlement to its peak of prosperity, covering industry, farming, domestic life and leisure through words, images and sound. It is volunteer-run, so check the hours before a long trip.
- Opening: Wednesday, Friday and Saturday 11am to 3pm, plus 11am to 3pm on Market Sundays. Visit Swale lists only Friday and Saturday, 11am to 3pm, so check before a long trip.
- Cost: the Faversham Society’s page and Visit Swale both list free entry.
St Mary of Charity Church
The parish church of Faversham is on Church Road, off East Street. British Listed Buildings reproduces its Historic England entry as Grade I listed, a cruciform building from the 14th and 15th centuries. George Dance rebuilt the nave interior in classical style in 1755, and the openwork spire was added in 1797 and later encased in stone. The church’s page on A Church Near You lists it as generally open daily from 9.30am to 4pm, and says it may close occasionally for events. No admission charge is stated.
Shepherd Neame brewery tours
Shepherd Neame says it has brewed in Faversham for over 850 years. The brewery is at 17 Court Street, and its visitor centre is in a restored medieval hall house. The guided tour lasts 80 minutes, covers brewing from raw materials to distribution, includes the Old Brewery Store and ends with a tutored tasting.
- Booking: tours are booked online or by phone on 01795 542016.
- Cost: the tours page lists £25.
- Days and age: Visit Swale says brewery tours currently run Wednesday to Saturday, and that visitors must be 18 or over. The brewery’s own page does not give days, so check when you book.
- Access: the tours page gives no accessibility answer, so ask when you book.
Oare Gunpowder Works Country Park
The country park is a former gunpowder factory in woodland, wetland and open glades on the edge of Faversham, just off the Western Link road, north of Bysing Wood Road. Visit Swale lists it as a scheduled monument and a Green Flag park, and Swale Borough Council announced the park’s Green Flag Award for 2026 in July 2026. The park’s own site says Swale Borough Council manages it, and it has a visitor centre. Its own site lists free entry, and Visit Swale welcomes pets.
- Opening: the park is open seven days a week. The car park lists 10am to 4pm all year, though the Visit Swale listing gives vehicle hours of 9am to 5pm on weekdays. Vehicles must leave before the car park gate is locked, and pedestrians can still enter outside those hours.
- Visitor centre: weekends and public holidays, mid-March to mid-November, 10am to 4pm.
- Access: surfaced paths suitable for wheelchairs and buggies, a disabled toilet through the Radar Key scheme, and Blue Badge parking spaces.
Oare Marshes
Oare Marshes is a Kent Wildlife Trust grazing marsh reserve with saltmarsh, a seawall and bird hides, on Church Road in Oare. The Trust lists it as open at all times, and its page describes it as of international importance for migratory, overwintering and breeding wetland birds.
- Cost: no entry fee is listed. The Trust lists charged parking at £2.50 on weekdays and £3.50 at weekends, paid through RingGo. Some third-party listings say parking is free, but the Trust’s page is the owner’s, so follow it.
- Dogs: on a lead on the public right of way, and out of water, ditches and saltmarsh.
- Access: the path to the sea hide is level and surfaced, and there are Radar gates. The reserve is seasonally accessible for wheelchair users, and a full circuit to the east hide may not be possible in wet conditions.
- Sat-nav: the Trust’s reserve page and Visit Kent give the postcode ME13 0QD, but the Trust’s own event listing gives ME13 0QA for the main car park, so check a map before you set off.
Brogdale Collections
Brogdale is a charity that holds the National Fruit Collection, with thousands of varieties of apples, pears, plums, cherries and more across more than 150 acres of Kent farmland, at Brogdale Road. Self-guided orchard walks are possible all year with an Orchard Pass, and Visit South East England lists 10am to 4pm daily for its low season from 1 November 2026 to 31 March 2027. Guided orchard tours run April to October and tractor tours June to October, so neither is available in winter. Prices differ between sources, so check Brogdale’s page. The cafe, farm shop and other Marketplace businesses set their own hours.
Choosing between them
- Town history: the Fleur de Lis Heritage Centre and St Mary of Charity.
- Industrial history in a woodland: Oare Gunpowder Works.
- Birdwatching: Oare Marshes.
- Orchards: Brogdale, with a walk in winter.
- Food and drink: the Shepherd Neame tour, for over-18s.
- Dogs: Oare Gunpowder Works welcomes pets, per Visit Swale, and Oare Marshes asks for them on a lead.
Planning the day
The heritage centre has the narrowest hours, three days a week and Market Sundays, so build the day around those. The church and the brewery are both in the town, and the brewery tour needs booking. We have no distances between any of the places, so check a map before you decide whether to walk or drive.
Getting there
For trains, buses and town-centre parking, use the operators’ and Swale Borough Council’s pages. Oare Marshes has a charged car park, and the gunpowder works has a car park with a locking gate.
Frequently asked questions
Is Oare Marshes in Faversham?
InKent lists it under Oare, on Church Road, near Faversham.
Does the Fleur de Lis Heritage Centre charge?
No. The Faversham Society’s page and Visit Swale both list free entry.
Can I walk the Brogdale orchards in winter?
Visit South East England lists Brogdale as open 10am to 4pm daily through its 1 November 2026 to 31 March 2027 low season, and describes self-guided orchard walks with an Orchard Pass as available all year.