Southern Through the Ages runs 7 and 8 November from Tenterden Town station. Day tickets are £35 for adults and £18.50 for children, with trains from 10am.

The Kent and East Sussex Railway’s autumn gala, Southern Through the Ages, runs on Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 November 2026 from Tenterden Town station. It is a weekend of Southern Railway engines on an intensive timetable of passenger, freight and mixed trains, and the railway bills it as the last chance to see its Terrier, Knowle, at work before she is withdrawn for a major overhaul (K&ESR).

The quick answer

Yes, it is on, and tickets are on sale now. A one-day Gala Freedom ticket, which gives unlimited travel, costs £35 for an adult, £30 for a senior and £18.50 for a child aged 3 to 15. The first train leaves Tenterden at 10am on both days. The last train back reaches Tenterden at 5.30pm on Saturday and 5.18pm on Sunday. Sunday is also Remembrance Sunday, so allow for the A28 closure in Tenterden that morning.

Tickets and prices

The railway sells gala tickets through its online booking system and says to buy in advance for the best prices. These are the prices it lists for the weekend (K&ESR booking):

Ticket One day Both days
Adult £35.00 £53.00
Senior (over 60) £30.00 £50.00
Child (3 to 15) £18.50 £28.00
Family: 2 adults, 1 child £70.00 not offered
Family: 2 adults, 2 children £75.50 not offered
Platform and photography ticket £10.00 £15.00

The platform and photography ticket gives entry to all the stations but not travel. For a family of four spending both days on the line, two adult and two child two-day tickets come to £162, against £151 for two one-day family tickets. The saving is small, so book the days you will actually use.

What is running

The railway has confirmed three participants so far (K&ESR):

  • A1X Terrier No. 2678 Knowle, the headline, running before her overhaul.
  • Class 205 diesel electric multiple unit No. 1118.
  • Austerity 0-6-0ST No. 68032.

It says more locomotives representing different eras of the Southern will be announced in the coming weeks. The published timetables work four locomotives plus the diesel unit, and include demonstration freight trains between the passenger services. The railway’s own disclaimer on the timetables is worth reading: it will try to run the advertised service but cannot guarantee which engine hauls which train, and there are no refunds if the line-up changes.

Train times

Both working timetables are dated 23 September 2026 (version 1.0), so check them again closer to the weekend.

Saturday 7 November. Passenger trains leave Tenterden at 10am, 10.45am, 11.05am (to Northiam), 11.30am, 12.15pm, 1.01pm (to Rolvenden), 1.10pm, 1.55pm, 2.40pm and 3.30pm. The 10am reaches Bodiam at 10.45am. The last train to Bodiam is the 3.30pm, and the last train back leaves Bodiam at 4.40pm, arriving in Tenterden at 5.30pm (Saturday timetable, PDF).

Sunday 8 November. Trains to Bodiam leave Tenterden at 10am, 10.45am, 11.30am, 12.15pm, 1pm, 1.45pm, 2.30pm and 3.15pm, with a diesel unit working at 11.10am. The last train to Bodiam is the 3.15pm, and the last train back leaves Bodiam at 4.18pm, arriving in Tenterden at 5.18pm (Sunday timetable, PDF).

Two rules on the timetable catch people out:

  • You cannot change trains at Rolvenden going towards Tenterden. Most trains pass outside the station, so you can get off a Bodiam-bound train and wait for a Tenterden-bound one elsewhere, but not the other way round at Rolvenden.
  • To change at Northiam, sit in the front of a Bodiam-bound train or the rear of a Tenterden-bound one, then cross the line at the board crossing by the signal box.

Sunday is Remembrance Sunday

8 November is Remembrance Sunday. Last year Tenterden’s parade left Recreation Ground Road at 10.30am and the A28 from Recreation Ground Road to West Cross was closed from 10.25am to 11.40am. This year’s timings are not out yet. If you are driving to the station on Sunday morning, arrive before 10.25am or after the road reopens. Our Remembrance Sunday page will carry the 2026 times when the council publishes them.

Parking

The railway offers limited free parking for customers at Tenterden Town station, just over the level crossing, postcode TN30 6HE (K&ESR). On its Christmas pages it limits that to three hours and points visitors to nearby pay and display car parks when it fills (K&ESR). A Freedom ticket day is longer than three hours, so the council car parks are the safer bet:

  • Station Road car park, TN30 6HN: 43 spaces, £1.30 an hour, £13.20 for over four hours, charged 8am to 6pm. RingGo 26660 (Ashford Borough Council).
  • Bridewell Lane car park, TN30 6EY: 125 spaces, £1.30 an hour but only £6 for over four hours, and free all day on Sundays. RingGo 26659 (Ashford Borough Council).

Bridewell Lane is the obvious choice for the Sunday. Every Tenterden car park and tariff is on our parking in Ashford page, and anything else on the A28 is in Ashford roadworks and travel.

Access, buggies and dogs

The railway’s accessible coach, Petros, has ramped wheelchair access, moveable seating and an accessible toilet, and space can be reserved at no extra cost by ringing the booking office on 01580 765155 (9.30am to 4.30pm, Monday to Friday). The shop and the Colonel Stephens Railway Museum at Tenterden have full wheelchair access (K&ESR FAQ).

The railway says dogs are welcome on normal timetables but that restrictions may apply at special events, and that it often runs a buggy park at events because there is no room on the trains. The gala page does not yet say either way, so ring before you bring either.

Still to be announced

  • The full locomotive line-up: the railway says more engines will be named in the coming weeks.
  • Any change to the timetables, which are version 1.0.
  • 2026 Remembrance Sunday road closure times in Tenterden.

We will update this page as the railway adds detail. For everything else on that fortnight, see what’s on in Ashford.

Sources