Top 5 beaches in North Norfolk

We are spoilt for choice when it comes to the coastline in North Norfolk. Did you know that Both Wells and Holkham feature in the Telegraph’s best British beaches review, which got us thinking about the all of the local beaches we like to enjoy.  

Here’s our top five:

Holkham

Holkham beach was famously featured in the film, Shakespeare in Love a few years back, but did you know that it’s also part of one of the largest National Nature Reserves in the country? The beach offers miles of beautiful golden sands and it really is a place of unspoilt beauty. Be mindful that if you have young children, they will need to be good walkers as this is an expansive beach where you can walk for miles before you reach the sea when the tide is out.

Wells-next-the-sea

Wells beach is a beautiful sandy beach backed by dunes and pine trees. It’s also lined with lots of colourful beach huts, giving it that authentic seaside feeling. The beach is only a mile away from the town centre so it’s easy to stroll between the two, alternatively, there is a beach car park or in the summer you can use the miniature railway to travel between both areas. The gentle sea waters makes the beach at Wells a perfect family day out and don’t forget to treat yourself to some fish ‘n’ chips whilst you are there!

Brancaster Beach & The National Trust Millennium Activity Centre

Brancaster has an accessible sandy beach with adjacent car park, making it a popular beach for families. Like Wells, its gentle sea waters make it a calm and relaxing place to enjoy the coastline and take a leisurely dip in the sea. It’s also a great place for kite flying and enjoying a range of watersports.  In addition to this, Brancaster is an extensive coastal area that’s famous for its wild birds, so offers a great birdwatching experience too.

Hunstanton

Hunstanton, also known as Sunny Hunny, is famous for it’s striped cliffs. This seaside town is great for families whatever the weather as there are amusements arcades as well as the beach to enjoy. The shallow beach can offer some fantastic rock pools to explore when the tide is out and for the more adventurous; it’s a great beach for kite surfing. If you’re one for taking it easy, then why not hire out one of the beach huts, chill out in your deck chair and enjoy the seaside experience and an ice cream!

Blakeney

Blakeney nature reserve offers 4 miles of natural coastline that hosts a massive spectrum of wildlife including seasonal migrating birds and seal colonies. The reserve also has varying landscapes, a sand and shingle spit, salt marshes, sand dunes and a range of plant life. It’s a spectacular place to discover and enjoy our beautiful wildlife and unspoilt surroundings.

Pedal Norfolk – Celebrating British Cycling

Between the 3^rd – 6^th May, Holkham Hall are running a fantastic 3-day cycling festival, Pedal Norfolk, to celebrate British Cycling.

There are lots of events and activities planned for cyclists of all abilities over the weekend. For the keen cyclist, you can explore beautiful Norfolk by entering the sportives that cover 250 miles over the 3 days. To enter the sportives, you must apply online via the British Cycling website. There are also plenty of family activities to get involved with from the basics of how to use a balance bike to family coaching and a competitive downhill family race.

If cycling is not your thing, there’s still plenty to keep you entertained locally. Holkham Hall will be open to view during Sunday and Monday and Holkham beach is great to explore. There are also several walks to enjoy plus lots of villages to discover nearby that are fully of boutique shops, galleries and great places to eat.

Our cottages are less than 10 miles away from Holkham Hall and over the bank holiday we have availability in Garden House, Avocet and Swallow, all of which sleep 6 people. We are currently offering a special 4 night bank holiday deal in Garden House & Avocet with a £100 off plus 3 nights are available in Swallow.

View our cottages and book online here >>>

We have a secure cycle store on site plus facilities for washing down bikes and a laundry room available to wash and dry sports clothes. You can finish the day unwinding in our heated indoor pool and Jacuzzi before getting a well deserved rest in our very comfortable beds.

North Norfolk has some great scenic routes which are great to discover by bike. Learn more about the cycling routes that are local to our cottages by visiting our website.

Competition Time!

We’re giving you the chance to win a short break in one of our luxury 4* cottages when we reach 150 likes on our Facebook Page^†.

All you have to do to enter is simply ‘Like’ our Cranmer Cottages Facebook Page and ‘Share’ the competition post. When we reach 150 likes, we will enter all the names of those who have ‘Liked’ & ‘Shared’ our post into a draw and we will announce the winner on our Facebook Page.

^†Terms and Conditions

All entrants must have ‘Liked’ our Facebook page and ‘Shared’ the competition post. The draw will take place as soon as we reach 150 Likes on our Facebook Page.

The winner must supply full contact details including email address, postal address & contact telephone number upon booking.

The break can be taken either as a 3 night weekend break (Fri – Mon) or 4 night midweek break (Mon-Fri). Break must be taken between Friday 15 November 2013 and Friday 21 March 2014, subject to availability and excludes school holidays, Christmas & New Year. Cottages would be 4* 2 bedroom family properties Owl, Wagtail, Tern (sleep 4) and 3 bedroom Woodpecker (sleep 5). The prize is not transferable, there is no cash alternative & cannot be taken by a third party. Once booked it cannot be changed.