DISCOVERING THE BEAUTIFUL NORFOLK COAST
England’s Norfolk Coast is one of the most scenic coastal landscapes in the world, due in no small part to the fact that it is protected under the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949. This Act classifies the region as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB). Spanning nearly 280 miles of coastline, this is one of the most captivating driving tours in all of England, especially for those who revere nature.
Although the drive along the Norfolk Coast can be accomplished in about two and a half hours, you may want to plan for a few days so you can enjoy each location to the absolute fullest. Hopefully these descriptions will help you plan your route.
This journey is a total of approximately 90 miles and the tour has been broken up by the best stops (we think):
KINGS LYNN
Despite being a relatively small village King’s Lynn still offers a wealth of sites and attractions and throughout this journey, you’ll see there are plenty of things to do in Norfolk. Oxburgh Hall, complete with a moat, is a popular place to visit, while the Kings Lynn Minister (St. Margaret’s Church) offers a glimpse at some of the region’s regal Gothic architecture. Meanwhile, for the nature lover, Snettisham Park and Gooderstone Water Gardens & Nature Trails make for the ideal way to spend the afternoon.
HUNSTANTON – 16 miles from King’s Lynn
Take the A148 and then the A149 to Hunstanton. During the drive, you’ll pass the Dershingham Bog National Nature Reserve on the left, and then your route will also have you skirting Dersingham.
Beyond Dersingham, you’ll pass by Ingoldisthorpe and also Snettisham. Snettisham may be well worth a visit to see St. Mary’s Church and RSPB Snettisham – a certain delight for any bird-watching enthusiast. Back on the A149 to Heacham where you can call in and see Heacham Beach along with the city’s wonderfully scented lavender gardens.
Hunstanton is a little further up the A149. Once you get there you will immediately be drawn to the beauty of Hunstanton Beach.
In addition to the illustrious beach there is a wonderful collection of trails and walks – jump on Peddar Way and it will take you into some of the most beautiful and untouched parts of the countryside.
BRANCASTER & BURNHAM MARKET – 8 miles from Hunstanton
Back on the A149 and follow the coastline east. You will pass Hunstanton Golf Links and Holme-Next-The-Sea, home of the Holme Dunes National Nature Reserve. Before arriving in Brancaster, you’ll pass through the small coastal town of Thornham and go past the RSPB Titchwell Marsh, which is yet another must-stop for bird lovers.
Once you get to Brancaster Bay head to the beach. The Bay offers an endless stretch of pristine beach that’s ideal for picnicking, building sandcastles (never too old for sandcastles!) and other seaside activities… like eating ice-creams or fish and chips! Take a walk to the Bay’s inlet and with luck you’ll spot seals playing in the surf and laying on the rocks. Heading to Burnham Market the A149 changes into B1355, follow the B1355 into the heart of Burnham Market and spend the remainder of your day here including sampling high tea at Tilly’s or Burnhams Tea Rooms or simply just enjoying what Burnham Market has to offer.
HOLKHAM BAY, WELLS-NEXT-THE-SEA, BLAKENEY & HOLT – 18 miles from Burnham Market
Head east on the B1155 out of Burnham Market until it merges with A149 and follow the A149 past ‘The Lake’ and follow signs for Holkham Bay. Once you have given your camera a thorough work out with all the stunning scenery retrace your way back to the A149. Turn left and continue heading east until you reach Wells-Next-The-Sea.
Wells-Next-The-Sea is a pretty little port town worth a visit to see the Wells & Walsingham Light Railway, alpaca trekking and the beach. Be sure to check out the Wells Crab House Café or the Bowling Green Inn for lunch.
Back on the A149 to Blakeney. Like most of the stops along this trip, Blakeney’s attractions are geared largely around its beautiful beach. You can choose to lounge around on the beach, or you can take a boat ride out for a closer look at the seals. Leaving Blakeney take Wiveton Road, which turns into Cley Road and will bring you right into the village of Holt. In Holt you’re going to want to make sure you have time set aside to visit ‘Natural Surroundings’, a beautiful wooded retreat that features its own nature trails, gardens, ponds, and more. Holt’s other popular attractions include the Muckleburgh Military Collection, The Holt Antiques & Interiors Centre, Holt Castle, and Stody Lodge Gardens.
MUNDESLEY via CROMER – 18 miles from Holt
Take Cromer Road out of Holt and follow signs for Sheringham where popular attractions include Sheringham Beach, Sheringham Park, and the Sheringham Museum (The MO). Sheringham Golf Club – you could rent some clubs and go 9 holes, or you can make a visit to the Sheringham Life Boat Station.
To leave Sheringham, just get back on Cromer Road (now called A149), and head east once more. Follow the beach road until you reach Cromer, home to Cromer Beach and Pier, the Henry Blogg Museum, St. Peter and St. Paul Cathedrals, and the Amazona Zoo. Cromer also has its own golf club, and the scenic greens at the Royal Cromer Golf Club are worth checking out even if you don’t play golf.
Take the A149 out of Cromer toward the penultimate destination on this road trip, Mundesley. Follow the Cromer/Mundesley Road and after 18 miles you will arrive in Mundesley.
The coastal village of Mundesley became popular with the Victorians, when visitors were brought to the area with the opening of a railway in 1889. The railway has long gone, but the village is still very popular and is a great starting point for country walks. There are plenty of footpaths, circular routes and walking trails including Paston Way and the Norfolk Coast Path. Mundesley is also on the Deep History Coast Discovery Trail and has its own Discovery Point. Mundesley’s is proud to offer a Blue Flag wide sandy beach, with colourful beach huts and shallow rock pools.
Mundesley is home to a Maritime Museum, believed to be one of the smallest museums in England! Opposite the museum is a World War II memorial to the men who lost their lives while clearing landmines from the beaches.
Ready for your final destination? Jump on the B1145 south to the B1150 and follow this road to Norwich.
NORWICH – 20 miles from Mundesley
All through Medieval times and the Early Modern Age, Norwich was the second largest city in England after London. This city on the River Wensum prospered through the wool trade and a lucrative weaving industry, bolstered by immigrants from the Low Countries (Netherlands, Belgium and Luxemburg).
Then, because of its isolation in East Anglia, Norwich was mostly bypassed by the Industrial Revolution, allowing the city to keep its Tudor centre and multitude of Medieval churches. Norwich is also the only English city set in a national park, the Norfolk Broads, and has two sublime Norman monuments, at Norwich Cathedral and Norwich Castle.
Norwich is inside the boundaries of the Broads National Park, a landscape of more than 200 kilometres of lakes and rivers like nowhere else in the UK. The “Broads”, navigable lakes, were long thought to be naturally formed, until it was discovered in the 1960s that these bodies of water were man-made.
From Norwich you could drive eight miles to Wroxham, where you can rent a small craft by the hour and go exploring the waterways.
Norwich is typical of most cities, so much to see and do, too many to list but here are a few to consider:
Trading from Monday to Saturday on the Gentleman’s Walk under the Art Deco City Hall, Norwich Market is up there with the UK’s biggest and oldest outdoor markets.
Sainsbury Centre for the Visual Arts is a High-Tech museum and art gallery from 1978. The building is on the University of East Anglia campus and looks more like an air hangar than a traditional museum.
Walking distance from Norwich city centre is a fabulous Victorian Garden set across 3 acres in the hollow of an old chalk quarry which was filled with follies and flowers by a Victorian Tycoon.
Norwich Guildhall was the centre of city government from the early 15th century until its replacement by City Hall in 1938. England’s largest and most elaborate provincial medieval city hall.
The Catholic Cathedral is one of the finest examples of great Victorian Gothic Revival Architecture in the UK.
Bullards is Norwich’s only gin distillery, tracing its roots in the city back 180 years and Bullards three gins are distilled on site at the Ten Bells in a beautiful copper still.
The Norfolk Broads are the famous waterways – you can hire a boat and explore the Broads at your own pace. The Broads National park offers over 125 miles of navigable waterways and are home to over 25% of the UK’s rarest wildlife.
Pensthorpe Natural Park– Former home of BBC Springwatch, Pensthorpe Natural Park is a modern-day nature reserve of over 700 acres of woodland walks offering a fully immersive day out for families, bird watchers, wildlife enthusiasts and garden lovers.
The Bure Valley Railway – is Norfolk’s longest Narrow Gauge Steam Railway and operates between the old market town of Aylsham and the bustling Broads towns of Wroxham, within easy reach of Norwich and the nine mile line runs through a stretch of lovely, rural Norfolk, following the river Bure through meadowland and ancient pastures, stopping occasionally at small country villages.
Strangers’ Hall is a Grade I listed building and a museum recording domestic life in different phases in Norwich’s past.
10th century Blickling Estate is centred on a Jacobean mansion built over the house where Anne Boleyn was born in 1507. The current Blickling Hall is from the beginning of the 17th century and shines for its gables, elegant towers, mullioned windows and turreted chimneypots. The estate spreads out over 4,777 acres, 450 of which are parkland.
The Sainsbury Centre is an impressive collection of paintings and sculptures in a Grade II listed building and the collection includes Picasso, Degas and Lalique.
And not forgetting Norwich Castle Museum built by the Romans in 1121. Inside you will find galleries devoted to Boudicca, Queen of the Iceni, Anglo-Saxons and Vikings. Step even further back in time to experience the atmosphere of an Egyptian tomb with its ancient mummies. So much to see in just one place!
There is so much more to find when you explore this wonderful area of the east coast of Norfolk, how much time do you have?
Source – autoeurope.com
