Canterbury East station lies in the World Heritage city of Canterbury, a mere 20 yards east of the city's other station, Canterbury West, and in the heart of Canterbury Christ Church University student halls. The station runs regular services to Dover and London Victoria, with an additional Sunday service to Chatham.
The station boasts a tenuous link to the work of esteemed author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. In Doyle's short story, The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, Holmes and Watson are described hiding from Professor Moriarty in a train station in Canterbury; while the station is not specifically named, the fact that the pair were heading for the Continental Express via London Victoria suggests the station in question is Canterbury East.
Today, the small city of Canterbury celebrates its four universities - the University of Kent, Canterbury Christ Church University, the University for the Creative Arts, and the American University, Canterbury - and is therefore home to a large student population.