The wild jewels of Norfolk

Date of trip: May 2025

Total cost: £455

Number of party: 5 (2 adults, 3 children) and a pup.

This year we have set ourselves a challenge – to have visited every county in the UK, yes all 92 of them. This Family UK grand tour sets to improve our knowledge of our home country, highlight the beauty and open up the blank areas on our map. We are looking for wild adventure and the feeling of freedom.

Our most recent grand tour location took us to Norfolk. I am hoping to find a jewel in every county and Norfolk has many to choose from. 10 000 seals visiting Blakeney Point during the Winter months with 5000 pups, walks and bike routes that follow sandy beaches and windmills and the 303 km² of waterways in the Norfolk Broads are all contenders. For me, these were the jewels of Norfolk but there is so much more to enjoy.

Our itinerary would best suit a week or longer and we will be back to explore more.

Sheringham Park

We arrived at Sheringham park for a walk that included climbing through a rainbow of rhododendron flowers, climbing the gazebo canopy viewing platform and other smaller viewing platforms on route, enjoying an ice cream and contemplating the extra 1km walk to reach the beach. The walk starts in the Sheringham Park National trust carpark with a charge of £6.50 for non-members or National Trust members can park for free by scanning their membership card at the ticket machine. Head towards the buildings where you will find facilities (toilets, café, second hand book shop). There is a map at the start of the walk for the smaller trails but if you intend to add on the beach section it would be worth having the OS Maps App downloaded on your phone or a hard copy of one of these maps: Landranger map number 133 or the Explorer map number 252. The total return route with beach stop for a wild swim is about 7km depending on which parts of the wood you include and you will need at least 4 hours with children. For us, we loved the gnarly rhododendron trees to climb through but this made very slow progress on distance. Our kids just didn’t want to leave the trees. The bright flowers of the rhododendron trees were an awesome bonus. They were in every colour and able to be enjoyed from the ground or looking down on the top of the trees from the canopy towers. We all enjoyed an icecream at the end of our adventure.

Cromer Beach

Cromer beach is supposed to be the Norfolk spot for surfing/bodyboarding. On our visit, it was cold and the waves were small, so we were not inspired to enter the water on this day but the beach was still worth a walk and some runaround games. Bodyboarding would probably have worked and we did see people walking towards the sea with their surf boards but no one in the water at that time.

If you are travelling with a dog, you can take a dog on the left hand side of the beach (marked by signs) but not close to the peer. On the picture below, everything to the left is dog friendly but don’t take your dogs to the right of the steps.

Our youngest enjoyed the small park on the seafront and there were plenty of places to get a tea or hot food. We were also able to shelter from the wind at plenty of spots of the beach by the curved promenade or the groins regularly placed along the beach.

Cromer itself is well stocked with beachside entertainment, fuel and food stops.

Hunstanton beach

Hunstanton beach is a great beach for fossil hunting in the red layer after a storm but there is more to this beach than fossils. It’s a great spot for a play and fishermen seem to enjoy it as a prime fishing spot in the evenings.

Holme Dunes

Holme dunes is fantastic for a wild walk full of wildlife by day or night. During the day you can park at the Holme Dunes visitor centre run by the Norfolk Wildlife Trust. The visitor centre has a café, toilets and shop to help you explore the area. It’s a beautiful spot.

The Peddars Way and Norfolk Coast Path, a long-distance walking trail, passes around the reserve giving stunning views. If you follow this path to Staithe Lane, and wait on the harbour wall at dusk on a warm, still, Spring evening, you may be lucky enough to hear the rare Natterjack Toad and its rasping metallic song. Be careful not to tread on any. It’s best to park at the The Lifeboat Inn at Thornham village, have a drink or dinner and then walk up the track to the harbour. This will give you excellent opportunity if the conditions and timing are right.

Blakeney Point

Blakeney Point was a highlight. If you want to be overwhelmed by as many as 10 000 grey seals, the Winter months are best. The breeding season for grey seals is between November and January whilst for common seals it is around June to August. May is between the two so not ideal timing for seals but we still saw around 10 on a boat trip from Morston Quay. There are several companies that run these trips (details in the link at the bottom of this blog). We chose one that allows dogs to join the trip.

Aside from viewing seals, Blakeney point is great for sea birds and beautiful walks. After a walk over bridges and around the marshes, the pasties, cakes and tea at the food kiosk were very welcome. There are also toilets here.

If you fancy a longer route, you can follow the Norfolk Coast Path and then whenever you get tired, you can hop on the Coasthopper bus to come back.

Norfolk broads

There is so much to say about the Norfolk broads, we just loved it and are already planning a bigger adventure for exploring more water ways in the Broads. I would describe the Norfolk Broads as having a feel similar to how I felt in The Everglades and Florida Keys. With 303 km² of waterways to explore, I get the feeling of wilderness adventure that I crave here.

Where to start is the difficult bit. This is where I would recommend. Salhouse Broads is a gentle introduction for all the family with toilet, camping and a hot food kiosk. There is also a canoe/kayak hire spot or you can launch your own paddlecraft at the point of canoe/Kayak rental for £2 per vessel. This would make a great venue to paddle from to explore further afield for experienced paddlers and then camp. There was a 10 minute walk from the carpark to the water but this passed ancient trees where the middle had hollowed out providing a perfect spot for children to be inside a tree. The 10 minute walk took us much longer. The toilets are at the carpark so worth a visit before heading down. As well as paddling, we enjoyed a walk over the water along boardwalks and buying duck food to feed to the waterfowl from the kayak stand. It’s dog friendly but keep your dogs on a lead as there are breeding birds everywhere and make sure to clean up if they mess. There was a dog poo bin.

There is the option of staying on a houseboat to explore the Norfolk Broads. You could travel from broad to broad and enjoy the waterways with the luxuries that houseboating offers.

While we fed ducks, we noticed the Mississippi Paddle Boat, a huge ship made as a replica of a paddleboat. It is actually diesel driven but has a paddle moving around and a feel of times gone by. You can go on day trips on this or rent it out for a private party.

Sea palling beach dunes

Another beautiful sandy beach with a small carpark, toilets and hot/cold food. There are also amusements and other beachside entertainment.

Horsey Mere

For wildlife, water and windmills, Horsey mere offers a great walk or bike ride. The bike ride includes road sections on quiet countryside roads. I would prefer to walk the route, stopping on route at one of the campsites. Then you could take more time to appreciate the wildlife and explore the beaches. There are shorter walks for those who just want a quick visit.

Yarmouth Beach and the Venetian Waterways

If you want to feel like you have popped over to old Vegas, Yarmouth Beach has that feel. The beach itself is sandy and has a wild feel but can be difficult to get onto. An extended strip alongside the beach has been turned into a Vegas-like theme park. Aside from the beach, our favourite part was the Venetian waterways where you could hire boats to paddle around the man made lake.

There was also a waterpark with flumes, a big viewing wheel, greyhound racing, banger and derby car racing, nightclubs, rollercoaster and various other rides and attractions. Affordable accommodation options were spotted about also.

Accommodation

On this trip we stayed in a holiday caravan for ease and warmth. Sometimes it’s nice to have handy toilets and tea on tap. There are plenty of low cost options, campsites and slightly costlier options. We stopped for drinks in The Lifeboat Inn at Thornham village which was very comfy and welcoming, especially towards our pup. Details for how to stay here or for a menu are provided in the link at the bottom of this blog. It’s also a great base if you want to hear Natterjack toads on the Spring on warm still evenings. Enjoy a drink on the tables outside and you should be able to hear the toads, their song carries for up to a mile.

Houseboats are also an option on the Norfolk Broads.

Highlights

Our kids loved tree climbing. They loved being inside and surrounded by tree branches.

The beaches

The Norfolk Broads – paddling and feeding the ducks.

Top tips to keep the kids interested

There was no trouble keeping the kid’s entertained here. Wrap up warm on the boat trip and keep refuelling frequently during longer walks.

Suncream, even on cooler days on the beach and keep hydrated.

Slow down the pace – allow time to become fully acquainted with that 1 tree.

Useful links

Boats trips to see the seals at Blakeney Point Seal watching at Blakeney Point | National Trust

The Lifeboat Inn | Thornham, Norfolk Coast | Pub with rooms