Not expecting a great response, but, has anyone lived there? and what was it like?

Nb. I know there aint no mountains there.

Its a hole in the ground i'm afraid!

I live 30minutes from there and only go through to catch ferry normally.

Run down shopping area. Little form of entertainment for evenings. There are a lot of far nicer places to live in Kent!

Going for a look at the weekend with the missus. Dont hold out much hope in that case.

Worth a look though.

Basic rule of thumb

Port = Hole

AMEN Surfr………

Have a look in the surrounding area.

Sandgate or Seabrook are nice….. As are the villages heading further inland. Lyminge and places like that!

lived there when working on channel tunnel good times when a young lad with plenty of spare cash etc..
Deal was nice and Hythe just down the road, mind that was nearly 20 years ago

go and have a look around, parts are a bit shabby but other bits are pretty nice.

Deal is nice (again in bits)

Agree that its better to live away from the town, there are some really nice villages surrounding the town. That said there are some nice places to wander around, The Warren is a nice walk, The Leas isn't too bad for a stroll. There's a good bike shop, Activ. Very friendly staff and a good selection of kit. They organise weekly evening mtb rides for all abilities and races during winter and summer at the Fowlmead Cycle centre.
If you like music then The Leas Cliff hall has good bands on occasion.
Being so close to Dover you can hop across the channel where there are some great xc routes around Calais along the coast, plus the local tri group often have roadie trips too. It's great for getting to see the spring classics aswell. The place does have its positives.

AS I've lived here in and around the area all my life I feel well qualified to comment.

I agree with all the above comments, from hole to good place. Some of the surrounding areas are lovely and if you get to know the area there is some great riding to be had. Granted it is not the lakes / wales / scotland / etc but there are some nice places. Being a Lyminge lad all my life can cinfirm it is a great place to live. The area has a lot of benefits, proximity to europe, london is close by, nice seaside (sandgate is lovely), Canterbury only 30 mins away which has good shopping, Fowlmead country park has a great road cycling track and soon waymarked mountain bike track which hosts regular races, 40 min commute to london, Bedgebury 50 mins away, nice place cycling ok parking a bit dear, but use it or lose it, second Activ (although biased cause is friends with owner), but regular thursday rides with 40 people plus sometimes as well as regular wales trips and a few people who regularly race (inc a national champion)

It is not different from many places (I've been to a fair few over the years) and they all have great areas and bad areas. If you just got transported into the town you would think it is a hole, but open your mind and your eyes and explore and there is a lot of good places / things / people in the area.

I should be about on Sunday if you'd like a few pointers.
Mail me on timATj-twren.eclipse.co.uk and I'll give you my mobile no.

i lived in canterbury when in the army , went back a few years ago did folkstone as a day thing , spent 20mins there , wont be going back ever .

We might have met Bear I've been out on a few Activ rides and I've raced against Steve H more times than I care to remember and sometimes have the pleasure of Mrs B's company on the road.
I usually ride over to Bedgebury but if I drive I park in Park Lane on the Cranbrook side of the forest. Costs nowt and is only 100 yards from the xc circuit (about half way round). £8 is a bit expensive.

Folkestone is a dump. Lots of nice areas in Kent, Folkestone is not one of them.

I know I'm biased, but not all of Folkestone is a dump, granted large areas of it are, but then there are parts of Canterbury that are truly horrible, even, Steve I believe you are from T Wells, that place has some horrors and Tonbridge itself if you were transported into the middle of the high street you would think the tardis had got it wrong. But parts of Folkestone are lovely and surrounding parts even nicer. As a base it is good and property prices are still semi reasonable, just choose carefully.

Plop – not been out for a while as things been quite difficult but if you raced Mr H then the only thing I would have seen of you was your arse cresting the summit as I was trying not to have a coronary at the bottom…

Well

Went down to folkestone at the weekend for a good root around.

Went to Sandgate to look at a house and the beach was really nice but the town is a bit small (village i should say).

Had a good look around folkestone and there are nice and not so nice areas, looked at a few 6 bed places at radnor park which were nice, the area seemed pretty family freindly. Over all the town had the feel of somwhere which was in the proccess of changing. Reminded both me and the missus of Brighton when i used to live there some (very hazy) 20 years ago i.e. an alternative to the usual spots to live. Train into london was quick and trouble free. We'll keep looking but far from a sh!thole.

As for Tonbridge (mrs mum and dad live there) its a bit to blue rinse and tumbridge wells, far too commuter ville for me.

Thanks for the comments.

What about a village outside of Ashford???

Will still give you access to to the high speed link easily!

Took a look at ashford too.

My missus is after a victorian villa, the like of which we cant find in the villages.

I was actually quite surprised with folkestone, a lot cleaner then i expected with quite a few design / art shops.