Post-lockdown breakout: The escape planning starts here…
You might be a little stir crazy on your Quarantine Couch. You might even be thinking of digging a tunnel called, maybe, Tom, Dick or Harry. But there’s no Great Escape just yet. However, if you want to cheer yourself up and give yourself something to look forward to, there’s plenty of time to start planning for the pock-lockdown breakout.
There are six distinct areas of Norfolk to visit (seven if you include Norwich but it’s fresh air and open spaces you’ll want to enjoy post-lockdown). Which one will best suit you when it’s safe to saunter our way?
Before we get on to that, please remember, if you want to be The Cooler King, stay put for now… and only escape when it’s safe and government restrictions are lifted.
Great Yarmouth
Remember Tony The Tiger talking about Frosties and roaring, ‘They’re GRRRRREAT!’ That’s how we feel about Great Yarmouth. It’s been a mecca for tourists for over 100 years and is rightly known as the Crown Jewel of the East coast.
The reason? It’s Golden Mile is jam-packed full of family fun and entertainment, from amusements and water rides, to the Joyland snails, Pleasure Beach with its wooden rollercoaster, family shows at the Britannia Pier and the legendary Hippodrome Circus.
There’s also fifteen miles of stunning beaches, including Great Yarmouth itself, Gorleston-on-Sea and Winterton-on-Sea.
The Golden Mile
Family-friendly attractions, amusements and arcades, top shows and events
Norfolk Broads
The unique, man-made Broads have over 120 miles of navigable waterways
15 miles of beaches
Greater Yarmouth has a range of safe sandy beaches, including Hemsby, Winterton-on-Sea and Gorleston-on-Sea
Family-friendly entertainment
There's so many shows and events in Great Yarmouth, including the Britannia Pier and Hippodrome Circus
Award-winning museums
Great Yarmouth has a range of fascinating museums to explore, highlighting the town's rich heritage and maritime history
The fun doesn't end!
Throughout the day and evening, there's so much to do in Great Yarmouth... you'll want to stay longer
Norfolk Broads National Park
More waterways than Venice and Amsterdam put together and these ones aren’t in over-touristed cities, the Broads are 125 miles of navigable, lock-free rivers and lakes where you’ll always be able to escape the Madding Crowd.
You can cycle around or walk, but the best way to view the Broads is by water so hire a cruiser for a short break.
There are quaint villages to explore, attractions like BeWILDerwood and Fairhaven Woodland and Water Garden, and many pubs and restaurants to moor up at and while away a relaxing lunch or evening meal.
BeWILDerwood
50 acres of wild, outdoor adventure with treehouses, zip wires, jungle bridges, Crocklebogs, boat trips and marsh walks
Day boat hire
You can head out onto the water for just a day - why not book up with Broads Tours at Wroxham
Wroxham Barns
Greater Yarmouth has a range of safe sandy beaches, including Hemsby, Winterton-on-Sea and Gorleston-on-Sea
Boat trips on the Broads
Sit back, relax and enjoy the beautiful scenery when you take a boat trip with Broads Tours
Whitlingham Country Park
Visit the Broad in the city, and enjoy the water-based activities on offer at the Outdoor Education Centre
A wheely great way to enjoy the Broads
You don't have to be on the water to enjoy the Broads - hire a cycle or put on your walking boots
Discover dinosaurs!
As they say at Dinosaur Adventure Park, isn't it time you came and saurus...
Take a train journey
The Bure Valley Railway goes through beautiful Broadland countryside between Aylsham and Wroxham.
King's Lynn and West Norfolk
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II calls it home, as does The Duke of Cambridge and his family, so the monarch and second, third, fourth and fifth in line to the throne can’t be wrong, can they? Visit Sandringham to see how the Royals live, and don’t miss out on the medieval Castle Rising and King’s Lynn, which has more Graded buildings than York.
Also in the west of the county is fabulous birdwatching at Snettisham, Titchwell and Holme Dunes, the cliff-backed beaches of seaside resort Sunny Hunny Hunstanton and the Palladian delight that is Holkham Hall.
Of course, the west also has some of our finest beaches, at Wells-next-the-Sea, Holkham itself and Brancaster.
Holkham and Wells-next-the-Sea beaches
Seaside fun
Enjoy traditional fun at Hunstanton, otherwise known as Sunny Hunny, the only east coast resort that faces west!
Sandringham
The Royal family's rural retreat is open to the public much of the year
King's Lynn's maritime heritage
The port has a history of Hanseatic trading, with many merchants' buildings still open to the public
Holkham Hall
Castle Rising
Norman castle with one of the largest and best preserved keeps in England, surrounded by 20 acres of earthworks
Best birdwatching in Britain
There are nature reserves along the coast and Wash, such as Snettisham, providing brilliant birdwatching
Great for walking and cycling
Beautiful coast, countryside and Fens all provide the perfect environment for outside activities
The Brecks and Thetford Forest
If it’s eco-adventure you’re after then this is the place for you. Thetford Forest is the largest lowland pine forest in the country and has its own unique microclimate – it has the best overall climate anywhere in the UK. Go walking, running or cycling.
Look out for red deer, wild horses and other wildlife. Take a picnic to High Lodge and maybe enjoy the heights at Go Ape.
The Brecks are a unique landscape of heathland that includes Ice Age Pingos, Neolithic flint mines at Grime’s Graves and majestic moated Oxburgh Hall.
Thetford Forest
Outdoor adventure - go cycling, walking, enjoy aerial antics, or just have a picnic and watch the wildlife
Oxburgh Hall
15th century moated manor house run by the National Trust in the village of Oxborough
Thetford
See the huge hill fort, visit the Ancient House Museum, Dad's Army Museum and see the statue of Thomas Paine
Attleborough
Charming market town on the A11 between Thetford and Norwich - home of Ayrton Senna early in his career
Swaffham
Look out for the statue of Ceres, Roman goddess of the harvest, on the Market Cross - agriculture is key to this area
St George's Distillery
Take a tour of the home of the English Whisky Company - and try a tipple for yourself
Pingo Trail
8 mile trail of circular lakes created in the last Ice Age, pingos are unique to the Brecks
Grime's Graves
The only open Neolithic flint mine left in the UK - venture into the subterranean world
South Norfolk and Waveney Valley
Here’s the quietest, most laid-back part of Norfolk, taking in beautiful rolling countryside (walk through it on the Boadicca Way and discover an ancient Roman Town at Caistor St Edmunds), the charming market towns of Diss, Harleston, waterside Loddon and Wymondham, winding country lanes and thatched homes.
The Waveney Valley is home of the southern Broads, and it’s possible to hire a boat or canoe and be out on the water on your own, spotting amazing birdlife.
This is also the epicentre of The Friendly Invasion, when Norfolk became known as Little America.
Southern Norfolk Broads
Head out on the water in the Waveney Valley, or on the rivers Chet and Yare into Norwich
Explore market towns
Enjoy a stroll and peruse the local shops of picturesque Diss, Wymomdham and Harleston
Venta Icenorum Roman town
The 'town of the Iceni', Boudicca's tribe, can be found at Caistor St Edmund in beautiful countryside
Enjoy the countryside
The gentle countryside of the Waveney Valley is a great place for outdoor activities
The Friendly Invasion
Walk in the footsteps of US servicemen at the 100th Bomb Group Memorial Museum at Thorpe Abbotts
Wildlife at close quarters
The Waveney Valley is a great place for bird and wildlife watching - will you see an otter?
North Norfolk
Some of the most iconic sights of the county are on the Norfolk coast: the seals at Blakeney Point, birdwatching at Cley-next-the-Sea, the National Trust Sheringham Park and North Norfolk Heritage Railway, seaside resort Cromer with its Victorian pier and end-of-pier theatre, the Deep History Coast when Norfolk was the last part of the UK still attached to the Continent.
Inland is the charming Georgian town of Holt and the Cromer Ridge with its Quiet Lanes that are ideal for cycling and walking – this is the highest point in East Anglia so great views.
Cromer Pier
Voted the best pier in Britain, and the only one left in Europe with a theatre on its end
North Norfolk Railway
Known as the Poppy Line, ride from seaside Sheringham to the Georgian market town of Holt
Seals at Blakeney Point
Take a boat trip to see the friendly and inquisitive seals, the largest colony in England
Beautiful coastline
An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the coast here has fine sandy beaches, cliffs, and tidal salt marshes and creeks
Deep History Coast
On a short stretch of Norfolk coast step back to prehistoric times, when Norfolk was the last land link to the Continent
Cycling the Quiet Lanes
On the Cromer Ridge, the highest point in East Anglia, you'll get amazing coastal views
