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Discover Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent

Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent, EnglandRoyal Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England: Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Charity_Shop,_Camden_Rd_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1274367.jpg
Author: Nigel Chadwick
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Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town and borough in Tunbridge Wells district, in Kent, England. The town is on the western part of Kent, close to the border with the county of East Sussex. It has a population of some 57,000 people (2012 estimate). The town itself is often simply called as Tunbridge Wells.

Human habitation in Royal Tunbridge Wells goes back to prehistory. It has been settled as early as the Iron Age, with habitation continuing into the Roman period. The rocks in the area was rich in iron, enabling continuous extraction of the ore into the 16th century.

There was not much of a proper settlement at Royal Tunbridge Wells until 1676, when houses and shops were built followed by a "chapel of ease", which led to the construction of a proper church in 1684. In the 1680s, the town experienced a construction boom with the development of shops along the Pantiles promenade.

Royal Tunbridge Wells was an early tourist destination attracting visitors to its chalybeate spring with mineral spring waters containing salts of iron. The popularity of bathing in well water continued until the 18th century, when sea bathing came into fashion. The town was originally called Tunbridge Wells until 1909, when King Edward VII granted it the official "Royal" title to celebrate its popularity amongst members of the royal family. It is one of only three towns in England to have received such a special privilege, the other two being Royal Leamington Spa and Royal Wootton Bassett.

Today Royal Tunbridge Wells is still a popular tourist destination. The hospitality industry it the largest sector of the economy.

Calverley Park, Royal Tunbridge WellsCalverley Park, Royal Tunbridge Wells: Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Calverley_park_2.JPG
Author: Palefire
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Visiting Royal Tunbridge Wells

Take the A21 road from London and continue on the A26 road to enter Royal Tunbridge Wells.

Places of Interest in Royal Tunbridge Wells


  1. Millennium Clock: 5-meter-tall clock in the center of town.

  2. Salomons Museum: Museum preserving the country house of Sir David Salomons, the first Jewish Lord Mayor of London.

  3. The Pantiles: Georgian colonnade with a variety of specialist shops, cafes and restaurants.

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Dear visitor, thank you so much for reading this page. My name is Timothy Tye and my hobby is to find out about places, write about them and share the information with you on this website. I have been writing this site since 5 January 2003. Originally (from 2003 until 2009, the site was called AsiaExplorers. I changed the name to Penang Travel Tips in 2009, even though I describe more than just Penang but everywhere I go (I often need to tell people that "Penang Travel Tips" is not just information about Penang, but information written in Penang), especially places in Malaysia and Singapore, and in all the years since 2003, I have described over 20,000 places.

While I try my best to provide you information as accurate as I can get it to be, I do apologize for any errors and for outdated information which I am unaware. Nevertheless, I hope that what I have described here will be useful to you.

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