Put a spring in your step

An annual walking festival is back with supernatural tours, art and history trails and wildlife walks

Soak up the sights of one of Kent’s most historic locations at a three-day walking festival. The Step Into Spring Festival of Walking returns this weekend to help raise funds for the Canterbury Festival, a multi-arts event that takes place in the city later this year.

The walking weekender includes a number of different routes focusing on the history, art and wildlife in and around Canterbury.

Follow in the footsteps of two of England’s most prolific writers, Christopher Marlowe and Geoffrey Chaucer, and stand in the same spots as royal visitors such as Henry VIII and Elizabeth I.

Fans of the supernatural can join expert tour guide John Hippisley on a ghost hunt, while art lovers can discover the public artwork dotted around the city.

There’s also plenty of wildlife to enjoy around the outskirts of Canterbury with a guided tour of Wildwood, a wildlife park in Herne Common that has successfully rewilded bison to the nearby Blean Woods. Walks take place from Friday, April 5 to Sunday, April 7. Tickets for all walks are £14 and can be booked online or by calling the Canterbury Festival box office on 01227 457568.

Our three top festival walks WAR AND PEACE

Starting from the city’s Military Road, this walk tells the story of Canterbury’s wartime past. Visitors can see the St George’s Church tower that was blitzed during an air raid in 1942 and the Grade II listed war memorial in the Buttermarket, all while hearing the stories of the brave men and women who defended their homes and country. Details: Friday, April 5 from 10am at the Prince of Wales Youth Centre

KIT’S CANTERBURY: In the Footsteps of Christopher Marlowe

Be transported back to the Elizabethan era and discover playwright Christopher Marlowe’s links to Canterbury. The influential writer grew up in the city and this walk will show you some of the spots where his legacy remains, from the King's School where he was educated to the Muse of Poetry memorial sculpture outside the aptly named Marlowe Theatre.

Details: Saturday, April 6 from 2pm at St George’s Tower

CANTERBURY FESTIVAL GHOST WALK

If you’ve ever wanted to get in touch with the paranormal world, expert ghost hunter John Hippisley is here to help you discover Canterbury’s supernatural side. The guided walk will take you to some of the city’s most haunted nooks and crannies where ghoulish goings-on have happened, from the murder of Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral to the ghostly sightings at Bishop’s Finger, Hawks Lane and St Margaret’s Street. Details: Sunday, April 7 from 8pm at Alberrys Wine Bar

From left, the war memorial in the Buttermarket; Canterbury at night; and the Marlowe Theatre