Great Yarmouth

Arrive in Gt Yarmouth and make your own way to your hotel. Stroll the amazing sands, visit the bustling promenade and experience being in one of the most easterly points in Britain.

Time and Tide museum of Great Yarmouth life is set in one of the UK’s best preserved Victorian Herring curing works and tells the story of Great Yarmouth from its ice age origins to the present day.

Wander through the Waterways – Great Yarmouth which comprises of the Venetian Waterways, the Ornamental Gardens and Boating Lake. Located just north of Great Yarmouth’s Golden Mile, the Waterways has been a popular visitor attraction for generations, enjoyed by residents and tourists alike.

End your first day with an evening of entertainment at the Hippodrome featuring a packed line-up of amazing acrobatics, daring stunts, aerialists, dance and comedy.  The building is Britain’s last surviving total circus building, and one of only three in the world to still feature its original sinking ring.

There’s still plenty to explore within the town.  Stroll around the Elizabethan House Museum a former Elizabethan merchant’s house. Experience Victorian life ‘upstairs and downstairs’ and see what it was like to work in the kitchen and scullery.  In the ‘conspiracy room’ visitors decide if it was here that the plot to execute Charles I was hatched.

Tolhouse gaol is one of the UK’s oldest gaols, dating back to the 12th century.  Here you can see the original cells and discover the fate of the thieves, smugglers, witches, pirates and murderers who were confined here. Use the free audio guide to hear the gaoler and his prisoners describe their experiences.

Built in 1930, Great Yarmouth based fishing vessel, the Lydia Eva is starring in this year’s blockbuster Wonka – the prequel to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory featuring Timothee Chalamet, Olivia Coleman and Matt Lucas.

The ship, which is the world’s last surviving steam-powered herring drifter, was taken to Lyme Regis for the scenes in the film showing a young Willy Wonka arriving in England. A visual effects team from Warner Bros then filmed at Lydia Eva’s berth on Great Yarmouth’s South Quay and this will be used to recreate her engine room using CGI on the big screen. The film is due out in December 2023.

It’s then time to take your pick of a beach:-

Gorleston Beach – Award winning sandy beach.  Pleasure Beach – An exciting mix of white-knuckle and child-friendly rides makes the Pleasure Beach an ideal family day out featuring the iconic wooden Rollercoaster, monorail and more.

The Golden Mile  The fun starts in Great Yarmouth on the Golden Mile, with more than a mile of enjoyment and laughter to be had between the two traditional seaside piers.

Merrivale Model Village offers just over an acre of the English countryside in miniature. It has its own busy town centre, a perfectly kept village inn, farm, travelling fair, sports stadium, zoo, holiday park, country club, castle and cottages. Explore the gardens and animated scenes, then play the vintage slot machines including one Arm Bandits, Working Models, Strength Testers and Fortune Tellers in the Penny Arcade. There’s also a nine hole crazy golf course that visitors and a traditional helter-skelter to enjoy.

A visit to the British seaside is not complete without a stroll along the Pier. At the heart of Great Yarmouth’s Golden Mile, Britannia Pier has been a prominent seafront feature for over 160 years. It remains a popular attraction with many visitors taking in the live theatre shows, food outlets, bars and amusements as well as great rides for all ages from a giant slide to dodgems, a carousel and the seaside classic, a ghost train!

Just six miles from Great Yarmouth, Burgh Castle is one of the most impressive Roman buildings to survive anywhere in Britain. During the 3rd and 4th centuries AD it was one of a chain of ‘Forts of the Saxon Shore’, built to defend the coast of south-east England. The Ruins of another fort, which was situated on the opposite side of the estuary during Roman times, can be found at Caister-on-Sea.

The site provides stunning views across the Rivers Waveney and Yare to Halvergate Marshes, part of the Broads National Park – an area rich in bird, animal and plant life.

Enjoy a guided tour of Rollesby Broad on the beautiful Edwardian launch Gentleman Jim. See the stunning scenery & wildlife whilst listening to local knowledge from the experienced helmsman (trips last approximately 30 minutes).

The Broads are Britain’s largest protected wetland and are unlike anywhere else.  They comprise a rich tapestry of landscape, water, and wildlife; woven together by history. This truly spectacular watery landscape provides everything for the outdoor explorer to enjoy, including walking, sailing, SUP, kayaking, and wildlife watching.