West Kent Local News
The Waterside Cafe building and decking at Branbridges Leisure, overlooking the River Medway. Image credit: Waterside Cafe at Branbridges / Facebook.
Branbridges Leisure: Paddleboards, Camping and a Café Right on the River Medway
It's an unlikely setting for a day out - Branbridges Leisure sits inside an industrial estate off Branbridges Road in East Peckham - but the site itself backs directly onto the River Medway, with woodland running alongside the water, and a genuine spread of things to do once you're there.
Paddle, camp or fish
The family-run business offers paddleboard, kayak and canoe hire and lessons on the Medway, alongside a campsite with both regular camping and glamping options and private group bookings. Fishing is available on site too. It's seasonal: open every day from 1 May to 30 September, with the rest of the year by arrangement - worth calling ahead (07803 335117) outside the summer season.
The Waterside Café
The site's café, Waterside Cafe at Branbridges, has built up a strong local following - 2,200 followers on Facebook and a 98% recommend rate from 27 reviews at the time of writing. It offers dine-in and outdoor seating overlooking the river and woodland, and currently runs summer hours of 9am to 4pm, seven days a week. On Tripadvisor, the wider Branbridges Leisure site is rated 4.1 out of 5 from reviewers.
Getting there
Branbridges Leisure is at Unit 23A, Branbridges Industrial Estate, Branbridges Road, East Peckham, TN12 5HF, just off the A228 Branbridges Road bridge over the Medway. It's a genuinely different kind of West Kent day out - somewhere to paddle a stretch of river most people only ever see from a car window.
