Dover Western Heights North Entrance Tours

The Western Heights fortifications at Dover date from the Napoleonic Wars and from the 1860s. They form a perimeter around what amounts to a military town, and the North Entrance gave access to the interior. The entrance dates from the 1860s and is a complex of tunnels, gunrooms and defensive ditches. These tours give rare access into the structure and include the original road tunnel, drawbridge area and defensive doors, gunrooms and vast underground water tanks. The site has been sealed since the 1960’s and this is a once a year opportunity to look inside and marvel at the engineering and scale of the building. Volunteers from the Western Heights Preservation Society are opening the North Entrance for the weekend of Heritage Open Days with the kind permission of English Heritage.

Timings

Saturday 19 September:

1000-1500

Sunday 20 September:

10:00-15:00

Location & directions

North Military Road, Dover, Kent, CT17 9DZ

Directions:

The North entrance is located on North Military road, Dover (the nearest postcode is CT17 9DZ) opposite drop Redoubt road (What3words tourist.baseless.roaring) The nearest car park is at St Martin's Battery, South Military Road, Dover (What3Words rockets.trappings.eyelashes). Parking is free. There is also limited free parking on Drop Redoubt road, Opposite the North Entrance (What3Words beep.appealing.swung) Please note there is no supervised parking.

Booking information

Pre-booking requirement:

Pre-booking required

Booking conditions:

Places must be booked in advance through Eventbrite, the link to book will be shared closer to the event in early September at the WHPS website https://doverwesternheights.org/calendar/ and FB page https://www.facebook.com/groups/WesternHeights Places on the tour are not available via any other place than the official Eventbrite link.

Booking website:

https://northentrancetours.eventbrite.co.uk

Alternative booking website:

https://doverwesternheights.org/calendar

Booking opens:

24 Aug 2026 12:00 AM

Booking closes:

18 Sep 2026 12:00 AM

Accessibility details

Access is limited by steps and by very uneven floor surfaces. lighting is low and the site is not suitable for wheelchair access. Pease refer to the WHPS website at https://doverwesternheights.org/north-entrance-tours/ for more detailed information

Additional information

Heritage Open Days is ONLY time of year site is open

Max number of people:

25

Estimated duration:

0 hour(s) 45 minute(s)

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