Reculver Towers and Country Park

The twin 12th-century towers of St Mary's church stand right on the sea wall between Herne Bay and Birchington, and they are a gift to a drone camera: a strong vertical subject, open water behind, and the Kentish Flats wind farm turning slowly on the horizon. Sunset side-light in winter is the money shot, with the towers silhouetted against the Thames Estuary. The legal nuance matters here: the towers and Roman fort are an English Heritage site, and EH does not allow recreational take-off or landing from its land — so launch from the beach or the country park grassland to the east and keep a respectful lateral distance rather than hovering over visitors inside the monument. The soft sandstone cliffs east of the towers hold one of the biggest sand martin colonies in Kent, so stay off the cliff face from spring to late summer. Wind funnels along this exposed coast with nothing to slow it down, and the sea wall generates rotor on blustery days. Weekdays are quiet outside school holidays; the car park by the pub makes logistics easy.