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The Canterbury Tales

St. Margaret's St., Canterbury CT1 2TG , England
01227 479227
Website
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Ranked #18 of 42 attractions in Canterbury
Type: Speciality Museums
Description: Travel with "Chaucer" and his band of pilgrims from the Tabard Inn in London to Canterbury Cathedral.
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166 reviews from our community

Visitor rating
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    52
    32
    17
    18
Date Rating
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Senior Contributor
36 reviews 36 reviews
17 attraction reviews
Reviews in 18 cities Reviews in 18 cities
32 helpful votes 32 helpful votes
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 19 May 2013 NEW

My 14 year old son and I had such a great time at the Canterbury Tales. I loved the fact they introduced the smells, sounds and sights of the 14th century with an excellent choice of Chaucer's tales from the bawdy (Miller's Tale) to the very educational and true to this day (Wife of Bath). Those were always two of... More

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East Anglia,England
Senior Contributor
40 reviews 40 reviews
16 attraction reviews
Reviews in 18 cities Reviews in 18 cities
7 helpful votes 7 helpful votes
2 of 5 stars Reviewed 17 May 2013 NEW

Old and tired, needs updating and taking the presentation into the 21st centuary.Tthe staff were good,friendly and tried hard ,but...the 'special effects' just were not.-did not work ,ended up just being funny.

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See 2 more reviews by wood57 for Canterbury
Canterbury, United Kingdom
Senior Reviewer
10 reviews 10 reviews
4 attraction reviews
Reviews in 2 cities Reviews in 2 cities
1 helpful vote 1 helpful vote
4 of 5 stars Reviewed 12 May 2013

For visitors to Canterbury this is a must. It tells a story which in part is funny and is easy to follow. You can visualise you are there with the pilgrims among the sights and smells. The small children loved seeing a bottom appear in one of the windows.

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See 8 more reviews by maryfrancesg226 for Canterbury
Steve B, General Manager at The Canterbury Tales, responded to this review
16 May 2013

Many thanks for your review - its amazing how many children (& adults!) love to see the bare bottom in the Millers Tale! I see you visited in September 2012, if you can find the time to come back and see us - we have introduced live guides for part of your tour, which really help bring the experience to... More

Horsham, United Kingdom
Senior Contributor
38 reviews 38 reviews
24 attraction reviews
Reviews in 12 cities Reviews in 12 cities
8 helpful votes 8 helpful votes
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 7 May 2013

We absolutely loved this - just take it for what it is. Having memories of trying to get to grips with the real Chaucer dialect when at school 50 years ago, this brought back so many memories. I loved the stories, especially the Pardoner's Tale. It is certainly a great way of bringing to life the history of the pilgrimages... More

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See 8 more reviews by judyh84 for Canterbury
Steve B, General Manager at The Canterbury Tales, responded to this review
16 May 2013

Thank you for your 5 star review! We really do appreciate it, and will ensure the staff get to hear such positive comments too. Thank you. More

Kent
Reviewer
4 reviews 4 reviews
3 attraction reviews
Reviews in 4 cities Reviews in 4 cities
5 helpful votes 5 helpful votes
2 of 5 stars Reviewed 7 May 2013

Took my 12 year old daughter here on bank holiday monday, We visited the cathedral first so we had discount vouchers for this attraction and only paid £12 and not the full price. The whole visit lasted about 25 minutes, and was not worth the money. The stories were interesting, but i found the smells quite offensive and not really... More

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Steve B, General Manager at The Canterbury Tales, responded to this review
16 May 2013

Thank you for your comments - naturally we are disappointed to hear them. We receive much positive feedback in relation to the smells - we think a medieval stable should smell as life like as possible! The visit lasts 40 minutes from start to finish, and we hope to be able to extend this in future with the addition of... More

Canterbury, United Kingdom
Contributor
11 reviews 11 reviews
7 attraction reviews
Reviews in 2 cities Reviews in 2 cities
7 helpful votes 7 helpful votes
3 of 5 stars Reviewed 6 May 2013

I visited the 'Tales as part of a group of friends as an after work thing-to-do. We were welcomed by a very enthusiastic member of staff who was entertaining and engaging. We were then set to looking around the attraction itself, which takes the form of a selection of waxwork models and plasticky sets with lighthearted versions of Chaucer's Canterbury... More

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See 9 more reviews by Matthew C for Canterbury
Steve B, General Manager at The Canterbury Tales, responded to this review
16 May 2013

Many thanks for your feedback. We introduced our costumed guides at the end of March - to date they have been extremely well received, and "the management" are certainly considering ways in which we can build on this experience. More

Eastbourne, United Kingdom
Contributor
11 reviews 11 reviews
3 attraction reviews
Reviews in 6 cities Reviews in 6 cities
11 helpful votes 11 helpful votes
4 of 5 stars Reviewed 3 May 2013

A nice way to start off a visit to Canterbury. Accept this for what it is, just a bit of fun, nothing high brow here, we really enjoyed the light hearted approach. Handy if you know the Canterbury Tales before you visit but not essential.

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Steve B, General Manager at The Canterbury Tales, responded to this review
16 May 2013

Many thanks for your review - we are in agreement this is a good way to start your visit to Canterbury! Certainly not essential to have read the tales beforehand - you may even be inspired to buy a copy fron our gift shop afterwards! More

westmidlands
Senior Contributor
24 reviews 24 reviews
3 attraction reviews
Reviews in 19 cities Reviews in 19 cities
9 helpful votes 9 helpful votes
1 of 5 stars Reviewed 3 May 2013

This was an attraction I had wanted to see every time I went to Canterbury and this time I was going to go as our guide had told us it was well worth visiting. Would I advise anyone else to go NO. I have never been so disappointed with an attraction so much in my life. The stories were OK... More

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Steve B, General Manager at The Canterbury Tales, responded to this review
16 May 2013

Naturally we are disappointed to read your review. We have made some fantastic changes in the last couple of months with the introduction of our costumed guides, which we think really help bring the tales to life. However, all feedback is welcomed, and we thank you for taking the time to leave your opinion. More

London, United Kingdom
Reviewer
5 reviews 5 reviews
4 attraction reviews
4 of 5 stars Reviewed 29 April 2013

Very pleasant tour, loved the character that welcomes you in the first room! You can smell and hear the Medieval Ages... very funny experience, a must to visit if you go with children!

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See 4 more reviews by Julieta_1986 for Canterbury
Steve B, General Manager at The Canterbury Tales, responded to this review
1 May 2013

Many thanks for your review - really pleased you enjoyed it, and its great to get feedback for our new costumed guides. Thank you. More

England
Contributor
11 reviews 11 reviews
4 attraction reviews
Reviews in 7 cities Reviews in 7 cities
30 helpful votes 30 helpful votes
3 of 5 stars Reviewed 27 April 2013

Took my 8 yr old here today as a rest from shopping!! The staff were fantastic, really helpful, friendly & clearly love their jobs! You take yourself round using a 'remote control' style listening device that tells the tale as you go. Head sets would be better as my arm started to ache half way through!! It is a strange... More

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Steve B, General Manager at The Canterbury Tales, responded to this review
29 April 2013

Many thanks for leaving a review - it's nice to hear your 8 year old enjoyed it, and that you both felt you learned something. We have made some real improvements in the last 6 weeks or so, and would encourage anyone that hasn't tried it to come and give us a go. All feedback is appreciated, so thank you... More

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