North Norfolk Coast

Cromer

Many of the landmarks familiar to Victorian visitors are still part of the attraction Cromer holds for modern-day tourists. The magnificent medieval church is a legacy of the time when Cromer - then known as Shipden - was a small town of fishermen and merchants. But in the late 19th Century, when the advent of the railway made the town less remote, development quickened and the tourism industry as we know it began in earnest.

Hotels proliferated as Cromer boomed at the turn of the Century. The current Cromer Pier, which is home to the UK's only remaining traditional end of the pier variety show, dates from 1901. Despite modern Cromer's reliance on the tourist trade, it is very much a working town. Crab fishing is famous in its importance. It is also a vital administrative centre, being home to North Norfolk District Council's headquarters, and a centre for sport and leisure facilities.

Fresh crab sandwiches and salads can be sampled in many of the town's pubs and restaurants. Cromer has a wide choice of places to eat, from the traditional Norfolk pub to the more exotic. The town has two museums. The Cromer Museum, displaying local history, geology and archaeology, is housed in a row of fishermen's cottages adjacent to the church. The Lifeboat Museum can be found inside the old lifeboat house at the foot of The Gangway, and the present lifeboat can be visited and is launched from the new Cromer Lifeboat Station at the end of the pier. In the summer months the Pavilion Theatre on Cromer pier is host to the renowned Seaside Special.

Sheringham

The railway arrived in Sheringham in 1887 and, as with Cromer (with which Sheringham enjoys a good-natured rivalry) the town found prosperity as holidaymakers came en masse.

Sheringham has two separate communities, Lower and Upper Sheringham. The village of Lower Sheringham is the village by the cliffs, with a mixture of Victorian and Edwardian architecture. Yet at is heart, Sheringham's fishing, and crab fishing heritage is very much in evidence. The village of Upper Sheringham lies a few miles inland amongst the undulating countryside. Miles of well-signed footpaths and by-roads around these two villages make Sheringham an ideal base for walking, cycling and horse riding. The famous North Norfolk Railway is situated on the edge of town and offers steam train trips through some of the best scenery in East Anglia.

Other attractions include the Little Theatre, the National Trust-owned Sheringham Park nearby, Beeston Common (preserved as a site of Special Scientific Interest) and the Splash leisure complex.

It is also host to the Potty Festival each year, attended by Morris dancers from across the country who fill the town's alleys and yards with different types of folk dance. Sheringham is twinned with Otterndorf, in northern Germany.

Wells-next-the-Sea

A harbour town, and once a haven for smugglers, Wells-next-the-Sea consists of narrow streets and yards leading to the quay, where compact buildings sit alongside maltings (most now gone or adapted for other uses, such as flats and the community centre). Grander buildings sit inland, particularly around the Buttlands - the town centre green once used for archery practice. This part of the coastline forms part of the largest coastal nature reserve in England and Wales.

The town is actually a good mile from open sea, with a narrow-gauge railway running to the beach past the Pinewoods Caravan Park. Another line, the Wells and Walsingham Light Railway, goes inland to the picturesque shrine village of Walsingham.

In the summer months the town is alive with tourists, attracted by events like the Wells Regatta and shows at the Granary Theatre. In winter, visitors include ‘twitchers' flocking to the bird havens along the North Norfolk coast. Bitterns and terns, oyster catchers, avocets and marsh harriers are among the species which make this part of North Norfolk a prime site for birdwatching.


Just a few miles along the coast is the Palladian seat of the Earls of Leicester, Holkham Hall, with its 3000-acre deer park and Bygones Museum, and a stretch of beach regarded by some as the best in the District.

Mundesley

Mundesley is one of North Norfolk's best kept secrets; a small but busy seaside village that offers the holiday maker a more traditional holiday. The wide stretches of sandy beach and shallow pools are an ideal playground for children of all ages, whilst the sea fishing provides good sport whichever part of the year you choose to visit.

Mundesley's small village charm is very much in evidence. Flowers and hanging baskets are always a feature amongst the wide variety of shops that can be found in the village centre. A fine nine-hole golf course offers unrivalled views over the coast. If you enjoy country walks, Mundesley has plenty of footpaths and circular walks. AT nearby Southrepps Common is an important area for wildlife. Covering some 12 hectares it is a mixture of woodland, reed grass and wild flowers.

Sea Palling and Waxham

Sea Palling and Waxham are small villages along the North Norfolk Coast, both with beautiful beaches and only 10 minutes from the market rown of Stalham. The area offers the ideal holiday for all, with miles of award winning beaches and unique areas of unspoilt natural beauty.

Once known simply as Pawling or Pauling, renamed with its prefix after Edwardian holiday makers discovered the delights of the village as a beach resort. Sea Palling has a rich history dominated by sea flooding, ship wrecks and heroism on the waves. Sandy bays, formed by a reclamation scheme, have encouraged tourists to the area. Water sports ranging from swimming to jet skiing are a part of Palling life.

The village boasts two public houses with restaurants, a post office/general store, a beachside amusement arcade, cafes, caravan parks, launching facilities for pleasure craft, duty lifeguard in high season and car parks to accommodate more than 1000 vehicles.

Waxham has a rural beach, where seals can be seen close in-shore and later in the season with their pups on the beach. Waxham village is also home to one of the largest tithe barns in the country, built in the sixteenth century providing refreshments in a historical setting.