Dickens Festival
Rochester comes alive with the celebration of Charles Dickens in the first week of June celebrating the works of the great novelist with the 'Dickens Festival.' Many visitors from all over the country and across the globe come to Rochester to see this extraordinary festival.

The Dickens Fellowship Society and many others join in the celebrations by dressing up in Victorian costume and parading the streets of Rochester and the Castle gardens. There is nowhere in the world you can see this festival of all Dickens characters, which include, good old Ebenezer Scrooge, Oliver Twist, Magwitch, Pip, Miss Havisham, Bill Sykes with his faithful dog Bullseye and many more other characters that Dickens portrayed in his novels. 

Walk back in time along Rochester High Street and feel the atmosphere, listen to readings of Dickens's novels, or visit the Charles Dickens Centre. Visit the Victorian shops, the craft stalls to find that unusual gift. 

Mr. Pickwick arrives by train to Rochester and heads the Saturday afternoon parade along Rochester High Street towards the Norman Castle. People line the High Street to cheer and wave as the parade passes.

In the evening, all the local drinking houses are full of entertainment or visit one of the restaurants for an evening meal.

Dickensian Christmas
Again Rochester comes alive with the Dickensian Christmas. Very much similar to the summer festival but with the emphasis on the Christmas novel “A Christmas Carol.�?Join in with the Dickens characters, street entertainers, the atmosphere is full of Christmas tunes.

It always snows in Rochester with the addition of an artificial snow machine, unless the real stuff turns up! The smell of roasting chestnuts fills the high street, skate on the ice rink in the castle gardens. The finale of the festival is the Dickensian candlelight Parade through the High Street culminating in Christmas carols outside the Cathedral.

http://www.historic-uk.com/DestinationsUK/Rochester.htm