I slept in Charles Dickens bedroom. That’s something to tell your friends down the pub. The historic Bleak House Broadstairs, the author’s favourite retreat, is offering you the chance to spend the night in the gorgeous Charles Dickens Suite at the listed mansion on the Kent coastline.
The suite, which has a bed once used by Queen Victoria and access to Dickens’ former study, has been restored to its former grandeur in the house built in 1801 and where Dickens wrote his classic novel David Copperfield and began penning Bleak House.
A spokeswoman said: “It was here that Charles Dickens brought many of his most memorable characters to life. We’re proud to continue with this tradition, by keeping the memory of Dickens alive and by making the house he treasured open to those who wish to walk in his footsteps, sit in his study or even sleep in his room.”
This year marks the centenary of the birth of Charles Dickens and Bleak House is one of his best-known works. The real Bleak House was a place he loved and where he regularly took his summer holidays during the 1850s and 1860s.
It was originally known as Fort House, but the author’s association with the place was so strong that it rapidly became known by the name of his famous novel. Bleak House overlooks Viking Bay and the English Channel with all rooms offering wonderful views of the sea that was notorious for smuggling operations. It has a Smuggling Museum in its cellars and the fascinating artefacts and memorabilia can be seen as a part of a guided tour.
Rooms available from £135 per night, with The Charles Dickens Suite costing £295 per night. The venue is also available for events and wedding hire. Visit www.bleakhousebroadstairs.co.uk or call 01843 865338.
