Folkestone Central train station
You can reach 51 stations directly from Folkestone Central on a weekday, without changing. The most frequent is Ashford International, with 89 trains a day.
See Folkestone Central on the map
Folkestone Central is the nearest station for postcodes in CT20, CT19. Check your own postcode.
- 51 direct destinations
- 638th busiest in Britain
- Staffed full time
- Step-free in part
- 70 parking spaces
- 7 bus stops nearby
Direct trains from Folkestone Central
Trains a day to each station you can reach without changing, by day of the week.
| Destination | Weekday | Saturday | Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ashford International | 89 | 111 | 35 |
| Folkestone West | 89 | 111 | 35 |
| Dover Priory | 88 | 111 | 35 |
| Sandling | 47 | 73 | 31 |
| Westenhanger | 47 | 73 | 31 |
| Deal | 45 | 39 | 3 |
| Martin Mill | 45 | 39 | 3 |
| Sandwich | 45 | 39 | 3 |
| Walmer | 45 | 39 | 3 |
| Ramsgate | 43 | 39 | 3 |
| Headcorn | 37 | 71 | 27 |
| Marden | 37 | 71 | 27 |
| Paddock Wood | 37 | 71 | 27 |
| Staplehurst | 37 | 71 | 27 |
| Tonbridge | 37 | 71 | 27 |
| Ebbsfleet International | 36 | 31 | 0 |
| London Bridge | 36 | 35 | 27 |
| Sevenoaks | 36 | 70 | 27 |
| Stratford International | 36 | 31 | 0 |
| London St. Pancras International | 36 | 31 | 0 |
| Charing Cross | 32 | 35 | 27 |
| Waterloo East | 32 | 35 | 27 |
| Pluckley | 24 | 2 | 2 |
| Thanet Parkway | 14 | 0 | 0 |
| London Cannon Street | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Birchington-on-Sea | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Broadstairs | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Chestfield & Swalecliffe | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Dumpton Park | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Faversham | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Hildenborough | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Herne Bay | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Margate | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Westgate-on-Sea | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Whitstable | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Barming | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Bromley South | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Borough Green & Wrotham | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Bearsted | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Charing | 1 | 0 | 0 |
and 11 more stations, each served less often.
Lines serving Folkestone Central
Folkestone Central is on the South Eastern Main Line. That page has the whole route, every station on it and how busy each one is.
Freight through Folkestone Central station, hour by hour
No freight is booked through or alongside Folkestone Central station in the week beginning 12 October 2026. Freight paths stay in the national timetable even when they run only as required, so a station with none booked is one that goods trains do not pass.
How busy Folkestone Central station is
817,324 passenger entries and exits in 2024-25, making it the 638th busiest station in Great Britain.
A further 601 passengers changed trains here without entering or leaving the station.
More journeys run between Folkestone Central and London St Pancras International than any other pair: 380,546 a year. That is where passengers go, which is not always where the most trains go.
Source: Office of Rail and Road, Estimates of station usage, 2024-25. Estimated from ticket sales.
Sundays
Sunday is a different railway here: 20 stations instead of 51, a drop of about 61%. Saturday runs to 26.
Nearest other stations
- Folkestone West 0.6 miles
- Sandling 4.5 miles
- Westenhanger 5.7 miles
- Kearsney 6.4 miles
- Dover Priory 6.6 miles
Closed stations nearby
Former stations within 8 km of Folkestone Central, from Wikidata. They are on the map under Closed & former stations.
- Folkestone Harbour · 0.9 miles
- Folkestone East · 1.0 miles
- Cheriton Halt · 1.2 miles
- Eurotunnel Folkestone Terminal · 1.7 miles
- Folkestone Warren Halt · 2.1 miles
- Sandgate · 2.1 miles
Show closed stations on the map
Facilities at Folkestone Central station
Folkestone Central is staffed full time, with step-free access to part of the station.
Ticket office: Monday to Friday: 06:00 to 19:00 · Saturday: 06:00 to 19:00 · Sunday: 08:10 to 17:40
Toilets · Waiting room
Parking at Folkestone Central station
- Station Car Park 70 spaces, 4 accessible
£4.70 off-peak, £5.20 a day, £20.90 a week
Cycle parking: 58 spaces (sheltered, stands).
From National Rail's station record, last updated 20 August 2026.
Getting to Folkestone Central station
Folkestone Central station is in Folkestone and Hythe, South East, and is run by Southeastern.
The nearest motorway junction is M20 J13 (Castle Hill), 1.0 miles north.
7 bus stops are within a short walk, the nearest being Julian Road.
Sources: Office of Rail and Road (Table 6329), OpenStreetMap and NaPTAN.
Folkestone Central station elsewhere
- National Rail facilities, opening hours and live departures
- Realtime Trains every train calling today, to the minute
- Wikipedia the station's history
- OpenStreetMap the map data this page is built from
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