Norfolk and Suffolk attractions
Expert guide to Norfolk and Suffolk
The best attractions in Norfolk and Suffolk, including boat trips and stately homes, chosen by our expert Sophie Butler.
Norfolk and Suffolk offer a wide variety of places to visit, including stately homes, steam railways, gardens, nature reserves and, of course, the Broads, which become packed with visitors during summer. Small towns with local food and craft shops are good for a morning or afternoon of gentle pottering – and, on a fine day, seal-watching boat trips are a great way to get a new perspective on the coast and its wildlife.
Main attractions
Norfolk
Blakeney
Blakeney is one of Norfolk’s prettiest coastal villages, with small flint cottages in the back lanes and a narrow, winding high street. The quayside is a prime spot for crabbing (or “gillying”) – children catch crabs on lines supplied locally.
Nearby Blakeney Point is a bird sanctuary, and home to common and grey seals, which sprawl lazily by the water’s edge. Hour-long boat trips depart from Morston Quay (some allow you to land on Blakeney Point for up to an hour). Contact Temples, Beans or Bishop’s Boats. Prices are around £12 for adults and £6 for children.
Blickling Estate
Once owned by the Boleyn family, Blickling Estate is said to be haunted by Anne Boleyn despite being rebuilt in the 17th century. Its Long Gallery and library are impressive, but the gardens and park are the big draw here – best to visit on a sunny day to appreciate the surroundings.
The Broads
The Norfolk Broads covers 117 square miles of mostly navigable lakes and rivers, created by flooding of medieval peat pits as sea levels rose, resulting in a landscape of marshes and reed beds. They’re home to a huge variety of birds and other wildlife, and you can rent boats for day trips or short breaks. The quietest and prettiest stretches include the River Thurne from Potter Heigham.
Burnham Market
Burnham Market is one of Norfolk’s classic brick-and-flint villages, with Georgian houses clustered around a broad, central green. It has a good selection of clothing and crafts shops. For fresh local fish, go to Gurneys.
Holkham Hall
An 18th-century Palladian mansion on a large estate, Holkham Hall's highlights include the Statue Gallery, paintings by Rubens and van Dyck, and the Marble Hall, with trompe l’oeil ceilings. A combined family ticket for the hall, exhibition and walled gardens is £41.
Houghton Hall
Once home to Sir Robert Walpole, Britain’s first Prime Minister, Houghton Hall has early 18th-century interiors sumptuously designed by William Kent. Other highlights include a superb five-acre walled garden and model-soldier collection.
Norwich
Norwich makes a good wet-day option or for a weekend city-break. Its Norman castle dates from William the Conqueror’s reign and is first mentioned in 1075. Its Anglican Cathedral, with its large monastic cloister and medieval roof bosses, dates from 1096. Other sights include Strangers’ Hall. Shopping is good: for big brands try Chapelfield shopping centre and for independent shops go to Norwich Lanes.
Oxburgh Hall
Oxburgh Hall is an atmospheric, 15th-century red-brick house, built by the Bedingfeld family, that's encircled by a wide moat. It has a range of exhibits inside, include needlework by Mary Queen of Scots and a priest’s hiding hole in the library.
King’s Lynn
This Hanseatic town nestles on the banks of the River Great Ouse and has a rich maritime history dating back to the 12th century. Join a guided or self-guided tour (details from the tourist office) to discover fine merchants’ houses, the seventeenth-century Custom House, St Margaret’s Church, St Nicholas Chapel and the grand Tuesday Market Place overlooked by the Corn Exchange, which dates from the 1850s and is now used as a concert hall. The Lynn Museum and the fishermans’ cottages at Trues Yard are worth visiting.
Suffolk
Aldeburgh
Aldeburgh is best known for its beaches and cultural events, including the Aldeburgh Festival of Music and the Arts in June, founded by Benjamin Britten in 1948. The seaside town has a long high-street with plenty of interesting shops and restaurants – and a 16th-century, half-timbered Moot Hall with a small museum of local history, including Anglo-Saxon finds.
Dunwich
Once a thriving port the Dunwich Museum has a fascinating model of what the area was like in the 13th century before the sea swept it away. Now a tiny village of little more than 100 inhabitants, it’s a stark reminder of the power of the ocean – as well as being good base for exploring the RSPB bird reserves at Dunwich Heath (see below) and Minsmere.
Dunwich Heath Coastal Centre
Located near Saxmundham, Dunwich Heath is home to warblers, nightjars and woodlarks. Visit from July to September for a colourful combination of purple heather and yellow gorse. There are guided walks and nature trails, plus a tea room.
Flatford Mill
Flatford Mill is located in the heart of "Constable Country" (the mill was actually owned by the father of the English painter John Constable) and is now a Field Studies centre. However there’s a small exhibition housed in Bridge Cottage, owned by the National Trust, and lovely walks around Dedham Vale to see locations that Constable painted.
Ickworth House
Ickworth House is a pretty Georgian rotunda that sits in Italianate gardens. Inside the property visitors will find a collection of paintings by the likes of Gainsborough and Titian.
Lavenham
Perhaps the most idyllic of Suffolk’s wool towns, Lavenham is home to a collection of 15th-century, half-timbered houses. Visit the old Guildhall overlooking the market square, now maintained by the National Trust.
Orford
Orford is dominated by a 90-foot castle keep, which is all that remains of a 12th-century castle built by Henry II. This sleepy old port, with its 14th-century church of St Bartholomew, is protected by the long land-spit of Orford Ness, owned by the National Trust. Boat trips are available. Buy freshly baked bread from the Pump Street bakery and smoked fish from Pinney’s.
Southwold
With its interesting mix of fishermen’s cottages and Georgian town houses, Southwold is well worth a visit – even if you only have time for a cream tea and a browse around the shops. Pop into its idiosyncratic museum with old town whipping-post and visit the church of St Edmund, where you can make out graffiti dating from Cromwellian times inscribed in the choir stalls.
Sutton Hoo
Sutton Hoo, near Woodbridge, is an Anglo-Saxon burial site dating from the early seventh century that was excavated in 1939. On a beautiful 225-acre site overlooking the River Deben you can walk around the ancient burial mounds and see the full-size reconstruction of the burial chamber.
Quieter alternatives
Norfolk
Banham Zoo
Banham Zoo is welcoming and well-managed, with tigers, leopards and zebra in 35 acres.
Bure Valley Railway
The Bure Valley Railway covers nine miles between Aylsham and the Norfolk Broads town of Wroxham by 15-inch, narrow-gauge steam railway. Or you can make a 10-mile round trip on the Poppy Line steam train, which runs between Holt and Sheringham.
Castle Acre Priory
The Castle Acre Priory has the well-preserved remains of the cloister, refectory and chapter house. There’s an excellent audio tour.
Dinosaur Adventure Park
Set set in 100 acres, the Dinosaur Adventure Park is a place where you can discover life-size dinosaur models on a trail through woodland and observe raptor racing.
Felbrigg Hall
Felbrigg Hall sits in beautiful parkland, and has walled garden, working dovecote and walking trails.
Sandringham
Owned by the Royal family since 1862, Sandringham has ground-floor rooms open to the public. There’s also a museum in the former coach-houses.
Gressenhall Farm and Workhouse
Located near Dereham, Gressenhall Farm and Workhouse is a moving and historic museum explaining the story of the estate, plus farm animals and antique machinery.
Sheringham Park
Designed by Humphry Repton in 1812, Sheringham Park is backed by sweeping sea views. A find place to while away an afternoon.
Pleasure Beach
Pleasure Beach at Great Yarmouth offers fun rides for families on the seafront, including a wooden roller coaster dating from 1932.
Wolterton and Mannington Estate
Owned by the Walpole family, Wolterton and Mannington Estate has a medieval moated manor that isn’t open to the public, but you can visit its beautiful rose gardens and enjoy its walking trails.
Suffolk
Gainsborough’s House
Located in Sudbury, Gainsborough's House is where the artist, Thomas Gainsborough, was born in 1727. Exhibits follow his career and include personal memorabilia.
Framlingham Castle
Framlingham Castle was home to Mary Tudor in the 1550s. Visitors can walk along the 12th-century defensive walls, which have fine views of the surrounding countryside.
Thetford Go Ape Tree Top Adventure
This Go Ape near Brandon is a collection of exhilarating Tarzan-style swings, zip slides and rope bridges strung through the trees.
Kentwell Hall, Gardens and Farm
Kentwell Hall is a privately run family home with a maze, camera obscura, ice-house and ancient yew trees.
Melford Hall
Located in Long Melford, Melford Hall is a turreted mansion, associated with Beatrix Potter and home of the Hyde Parker family. Inside are collections of porcelain, naval artefacts and Beatrix Potter memorabilia.
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Museum of East Anglian Life
The open-air Museum of East Anglian Life in Stowmarket is set in 70 acres, celebrating the region’s history and relationship with the land.
Top 10 Norfolk and Suffolk experiences
1. Get on your bike
Take the National Cycleway along the Norfolk coast and through some of Suffolk’s prettiest countryside. For cycle hire see visitnorfolk.co.uk.
2. Try the local produce
Visit Bakers and Larners in the Georgian town of Holt for its excellent food hall, which brings local produce under one roof and includes a deli counter which stocks over 120 cheeses.
3. Go birdwatching
Spot avocets, ringed plovers, little terns and marsh harriers from the RSPB visitor centre at Titchwell Marsh.
4. Take to the water
Learn to sail with the RYA-accredited Norfolk etc or book a sailing expedition in a traditional Norfolk fishing boat through the Coastal Exploration Company for an adventurous trip along the coast and along the atmospheric creeks and backwaters between Thornham and Cley in North Norfolk. Spot wildlife, catch mackerel, learn about navigation and enjoy delicious homemade food.
5. Go hiking
Park in Lady Anne’s Drive and walk along the sand from Holkham to Wells-next-the-Sea, returning through the woods.
6. Become a fisherman's friend
Buy good-value, freshly caught dover sole straight from the fishermen’s huts on the long shingle and pebble beach at Aldeburgh.
7. Get behind the wheel
Hire a classic, open-top sports car for a "Bells and Battlements" tour to discover the medieval churches and castles of Suffolk, organised through Open Top Touring.
8. Eat fish and chips
Good spots include French’s on the quayside at Wells-next-the-Sea, No1 Cromer and Aldeburgh Fish and Chip Shop.
9. Row your boat
Hire a rowing boat or canoe and potter about on the Meare at Thorpeness, a vast and wonderful lake with Swallows and Amazons-style inlets and islands.
10. Run away to the circus
Take the children to the fabulous circus and water show at the 1903 Hippodrome Circus in Great Yarmouth.
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