Planning your visit to The White Cliffs of Dover

Image showing cars parked in the level 2 car park at the White Cliffs of Dover, Kent on a sunny day. — Cars parked in the level 2 car park at the White Cliffs of Dover, Kent | © National Trust/Chris Tapley

We want you to enjoy your visit to the iconic White Cliffs of Dover. Please read the arrival and parking information on this page, which will help you have a great start to your trip.

Arrival information

There is no vehicle access to Fan Bay Deep Shelter or South Foreland Lighthouse. Please park at the White Cliffs Visitor Centre parking or at the Additional Parking facility, when open. If you have limited mobility, please see our access statements for the White Cliffs of Dover and South Foreland Lighthouse.

Please do not park on any of the nearby roads, verges or across gateways as most are subject to double yellow line, 24-hour parking restrictions and enforcement, and are required for emergency access.

Overnight parking and camping are not permitted on any of the car parks, National Trust access roads, public roads or National Trust land.

Car Park Level 4 closure

Level 4 parking is currrently closed to allow the surface to recover. We hope to reopen this car park level in early April 2026. The gate to Level 4 is locked. Please observe the sign and do not proceed beyond level 3 entrance as there is no room to turn around and you will have to reverse. Car park levels 1, 2 and 3 will remain open during the winter as usual.

Early/late arrival

If you arrive when our admissions hut is closed, please pay for your parking using JustPark.

You can use the JustPark app, or you can call JustPark on 07520 634455. The JustPark app can be downloaded from the Google Play Store for Android users and the Apple App Store for iPhone users. We recommend downloading and setting up the app before your visit. The JustPark codes are given below and displayed on signs in the parking areas. For more information, please see our arrival information for your method of transport in the drop-downs below and in our Parking FAQs section.

If you are a National Trust member, please register your membership number in the JustPark app and record your visit in the app for free. By doing so, you're helping to raise money to help care for the White Cliffs of Dover and South Foreland Lighthouse. Thank you.

Our main parking is close to the Visitor Centre at Langdon, The What3words location is: www.what3words.com/frames.saying.begins; postcode CT16 1HJ. We have 300 spaces on four levels, with step-free access to the walks and Visitor Centre for visitors with reduced mobility. If the additional parking is open, it is only a short distance from Fan Bay Deep Shelter and the Lighthouse.

Car park levels 1-3 have hard, all-weather surfaces. Level 1 is reserved for disabled parking with spaces for motorhomes at the end furthest from the Welcome Hut. Level 4 parking has a natural chalk/grass surface and can be uneven and slippery when wet. If you have a vehicle with low suspension, we suggest you park in levels 2 and 3. The gate to Level 4 is closed every winter, from late October until early April; to allow the natural surface to recover. At these times, please observe the signs and do not proceed beyond the level 3 entrance.

A daily parking charge of £6 for cars applies at all times. National Trust members, motorcycles and vehicles displaying a valid blue badge can park for free. A member of our team will be pleased to take your payment by cash or card at the Welcome Hut. Your payment covers parking for the rest of the day and there is no further charge to walk along the cliffs or to enter the grounds of the Lighthouse.

If the Welcome Hut is closed, please pay for your parking using the JustPark app or call JustPark on 07520 634455. You cannot pay for parking on the JustPark website. Instructions and parking codes are on the signs in the car parks. The JustPark code for White Cliffs car parking is 80707 and for the additional parking area is 80699. If you are a National Trust member, please register your membership card in the JustPark app. You can then use the app for free parking by selecting the National Trust member option. Please be aware that JustPark will charge for SMS reminders and updates - you can switch these off in the app. If you are parked at White Cliffs, you can also pay for your parking in the Visitor Centre shop, when open.

The car park gate closes at 7pm each day. We are sorry - you cannot park or camp overnight. Continue to additional parking for more details of our overflow car park.
If you have a motorhome or campervan, you can use either the White Cliffs parking or the additional parking, when open. If you have a large vehicle, the additional parking will be easier to use, and it is only a short distance from Fan Bay Deep Shelter and South Foreland Lighthouse.

At White Cliffs, please use the level 1a parking area, which is accessed from the main drive past the Visitor Centre - proceed straight on towards the gate, instead of turning left up the hill. Please park in the marked spaces only and do not park across several spaces as this restricts the amount of parking available and there is a risk you will be blocked in by other vehicles.

A daily parking charge of £9 for motorhomes and campervans applies at all times. National Trust members and vehicles displaying a valid blue badge can park for free. A member of our team will be pleased to take your payment by cash or card at the Welcome Hut. Your payment covers parking for the rest of the day and there is no further charge to walk along the cliffs.

If the Welcome Hut is closed, please pay for your parking using the JustPark app or call JustPark on 07520 634455. You cannot pay for parking on the JustPark website. Instructions and parking area codes are on the signs in the car parks. The JustPark code for White Cliffs motorhome and campervan parking is 77811 and for the additional parking area is 77808. If you are a National Trust member, please register your membership card in the JustPark app. You can then use the app for free parking by selecting the National Trust member option. Please be aware that JustPark will charge for SMS reminders and updates - you can switch these off in the app. If you are parked at White Cliffs, you can also pay for your parking in the Visitor Centre shop, when open.

The car park gate closes at 7pm each day. We are sorry, you cannot park or camp overnight.

Please do not try to access level 4 parking with a motorhome or campervan as there is a tight bend at the end of the road, with an abrupt change in level. This may lead to your vehicle becoming grounded. Continue to additional parking for more details of our overflow car park.
Coach Drivers

We have space for four coaches only in our dedicated coach park, which is accessed via the ramp on your left-hand side when you drive past the Welcome Hut. Parking spaces are offered on a first-come-first-served basis and cannot be booked in advance. A parking charge of £25 for coaches applies at all times and a VAT receipt can be requested from the gate staff, if needed.

If the Welcome Hut is closed, please pay for your parking using the JustPark app or call JustPark on 07520 634455. You cannot pay for parking on the JustPark website. Follow the instructions on the signs in the coach parks. The JustPark code for White Cliffs coach parking is 77752. Please be aware that JustPark will charge for SMS reminders and updates - you can switch these off in the app. Do not attempt to pay for your parking in advance, as space may not always be available. The National Trust cannot refund payments made to JustPark.

IMPORTANT: Please do not attempt to access the site with your vehicle if the 'coach park full' sign is displayed, as you will not be able to turn around. Also, do not continue on the road beyond the coach park ramp as the road becomes narrow with many parked vehicles and you will have to reverse out. Our additional parking facility cannot be used by coaches, due to the narrow road and tight turn.

Coach Passengers

When you disembark, the pedestrian footpath from the car park is on the opposite site of the parking area to the vehicle entry/exit ramp. Please do not walk down the coach ramp as it is narrow and there are no passing places. As you exit the coach parking, stay on the footpath and keep the sea on your right-hand side, the Visitor Centre is 150 metres away. Toilets are at the back of the building and there is a cafeteria and shop at the front. Cliff walks are signposted from the Visitor Centre.
Blue badge holders can park for free - please ensure that your badge is clearly visible. Please read our access statements for White Cliffs, South Foreland Lighthouse and the additional parking facility. If you have limited mobility and are asked by a member of staff to use the additional parking, please make them aware of your disability and they will try to assist.

If you arrive and the Welcome Hut is closed, please feel free to park in one of the disabled parking spaces and display your blue badge prominently on the vehicle dashboard so that it is visible through the windscreen.

If you are using the additional parking and wish to take a mobility scooter or wheelchair onto the site, please ask the parking attendant to open the field gate alongside the pedestrian gate. Continue to additional parking.
If you are a National Trust member and you arrive when the Welcome Hut is closed, you can still park for free if you register your National Trust membership number with JustPark and select this option through the app. Remember to opt out of reminders and updates to avoid being charged 20p by JustPark for each text message. JustPark will record your arrival and entitlement to free parking, and you will be helping to care for the White Cliffs of Dover too. Once you have registered your membership card with the JustPark app, this will be stored and you won't need to enter it again when visiting here, or other National Trust properties where the JustPark signs are displayed. Thank You.

Image showing one of the disabled car parks at the White Cliffs of Dover — The disabled car parking near the Visitor Centre at the White Cliffs of Dover | © National Trust/Chris Tapley

Additional Parking

Our scheduled additional parking facility opening for the 2025 season has now ended. We'll be publishing the 2026 scheduled opening dates in early spring. We may use this area occasionally if our main car park reaches capacity, or for special event parking out of season. Please check signs or your event details for parking information.

Facilities & places to visit

You can check opening times on the White Cliffs of Dover or South Foreland Lighthouse home pages. Please see the Things to see and do at the White Cliffs of Dover and Things to see and do at South Foreland Lighthouse pages for more information and details of events.

Toilets, boot washing and drinking water bottle refill facilities are at the rear of the Visitor Centre at White Cliffs and there is a dedicated toilet building at South Foreland Lighthouse with similar features. Accessible toilets and baby changing facilities are also in these locations. Dogs are allowed in all outdoor seating areas. Assistance dogs only in our cafes and shops and in South Foreland Lighthouse and Fan Bay Deep Shelter and Emplacement please. If you have a dog, please see the Visiting White Cliffs and the Lighthouse with your dog page for more information.

Viewing the White Cliffs

There is an ideal viewpoint for the White Cliffs, just 400 metres from the car parks. From the car parks, walk down the hill to join the road that passes the Visitor Centre, and turn away from the Visitor Centre, so that you are walking with the sea on your right-hand side. Go through the pedestrian gate in front of you and onto the gravel path in front of you to go up the hill. The viewpoint for the cliffs is at the top of the hill.

You are now on the King Charles III coast path - you can continue walking to Fan Bay Deep Shelter and Emplacement and South Foreland Lighthouse and even beyond towards Kingsdown, Walmer and Deal, if you have time. Please note that this is a public footpath and cycling is not permitted.

Fan Bay Deep Shelter and Emplacement

Fan Bay Deep Shelter and Emplacement are now closed for the winter. We'll reopen in late March 2026. Please check our opening times on the White Cliffs of Dover home page.

The shelter is approximately 40 minutes’ walk from the Visitor Centre, or less than 15 minutes' walk from the additional parking. We are sorry, there is no vehicle access to the Shelter.

We accept cash, credit and debit card payments for tours at the tunnel entrance. National Trust members with a valid membership card are admitted free. If you have forgotten your membership card, please ask at the Visitor Centre or Lighthouse shop before coming to the tunnels as we are unable to check membership details at the tunnels. There’s a dedicated Fan Bay page to answer your questions.

There are no toilets or refreshments at Fan Bay Deep Shelter. The staff will refill your water bottle free of charge on request.

South Foreland Lighthouse

South Foreland Lighthouse, Mrs Knott's Tearoom, the shop and toilets are now closed for the winter. We'll reopen in March 2026. Please check our opening dates and times on the South Foreland Lighthouse home page.

The Lighthouse is approximately 55 minutes’ walk from the Visitor Centre or around 15 minutes' walk from the additional parking or Fan Bay. We regret that there is no vehicle access to the Lighthouse.

If you are a blue badge holder or have reduced mobility and would like to visit South Foreland Lighthouse, please call, or email the lighthouse office in advance of your visit. Contact details are on the ‘Get in touch’ panel on the home page linked above. If you get through to our answering service, please leave a message so that we can respond to you.

Call at the lighthouse shop on arrival to enquire about tower tour availability and to buy your ticket. You can pay by cash, credit, or debit card at the shop. National Trust members can take a tour of the tower free with a valid membership card, but you must still be issued with a ticket at the shop. You don't need to pre-book a tour of the lighthouse.

Parking FAQs

At the White Cliffs of Dover main site, and at the additional parking area, we have a staffed Welcome Hut, which accepts cash or card payments (sorry, not American Express), or you can have your valid National Trust membership card scanned for free parking. When the Welcome Hut is closed, please use the JustPark app or call JustPark on 07520 634455 to pay for your parking. We recommend setting up the JustPark app before travelling to save time on your arrival. If you are a National Trust member, please use the JustPark app to record your vehicle details and enter your membership number into the JustPark app for free parking. Doing this helps our conservation work at White Cliffs.
The JustPark scheme is only for out-of-hours parking. During the day, please pay or have your membership card scanned at the Welcome Hut. If you cannot install the app and the admissions hut is closed, please pay at the shop, which is open from 10am until 5pm (summer) or 4pm (winter) or pay over the phone.

If the shop is closed, you don't need a smartphone to use the JustPark system - you can pay over the phone instead. Find the location ID displayed on the sign, then call JustPark on 07520 634455. Enter the location ID, then when prompted, enter your vehicle registration and payment details and to submit your payment. Location IDs are given in on the signs in the parking areas and in the arrivals information above.

If you cannot get a phone signal, please note down the location ID and call JustPark as soon as you have a signal.
We introduced PayByPhone in July 2020, for when the Welcome Hut was closed and this app has been used thousands of times by our visitors, with very few complaints. The switch to JustPark means that there is now a common payment method throughout the Trust, which is less confusing, saves time for our visitors, and it gives the ability for you to record your National Trust member parking. This helps our conservation work here at White Cliffs. There is no other change to the parking arrangements and the charges stay the same.
The 40p charge is for JustPark SMS updates and reminders and you can choose to opt in or out of these. This is not a National Trust charge. On Android devices, you should see two green sliders on the confirmation screen just before payment. If you switch these off, provided you have entered a current National Trust membership number, you will see the charge drops to £0.00. On iPhone, before you register for your parking sessions, you will need to go into the app settings (top right), then go to Communication Settings, and scroll down. You will find a section called SMS notifications for drivers. You can choose to opt out of messages, as you wish, then click Update Communication Settings at the bottom. If you choose to opt in to these messages, please be aware that every SMS messages from JustPark is currently charged at 20p.

Flying drones

Please do not attempt to fly your drone at The White Cliffs of Dover or South Foreland Lighthouse. The National Trust does not permit privately-owned drones to be flown anywhere over its property. See Flying drones at our places for more information.

The Port of Dover has also established legally enforceable regulations that define a restricted flying zone. These regulations cover a large part of Dover town centre, the port area, and all the land at The White Cliffs of Dover and South Foreland Lighthouse as well as the cliffs themselves and the nearby sea. Further details and a map are available at: Operations - Port of Dover.

Photography and filming

Taking photographs or filming for private, non-commercial use is welcome at The White Cliffs of Dover and South Foreland Lighthouse. This means that any photographs or footage taken must not be used to earn money, promote business or given to photography libraries or agencies.

Access to take photographs or make films for any other purpose (such as news reporting, commercial filming or photography, including content captured by influencers, social media authors and citizen journalists, to earn money) must always be agreed in advance and requires a contract in place which has been signed by both parties. See our Photography and filming page and contact filmoffice@nationaltrust.org.uk for more details.