Royal Connections

Arrive Harwich/Hull/Norwich/London Stansted

A cathedral city, the UNESCOs City of Stories and one of the east’s best kept secrets. Norwich is a sophisticated university city with historic lanes boasting plenty of independent shops, cafes, and restaurants, along with an outstanding connection to the world of literature, arts, and culture. Renowned landmarks include Norwich Cathedral, Norwich Castle, the open air market, and the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Art. Norwich is the gateway to the Broads National Park, the only English national park to include a City in its boundary. Stay in the historic Maids Head Hotel or select from a range of different hotels to suit your budget.

Take a trip along the waterways for a first-hand view of the wildlife and biodiversity in this wetland paradise in the East of England.

Where enchanted waterways meet endless skies, the Broads are Britain’s largest protected wetland and are unlike anywhere else. 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. Easy access from Norwich or opt to stay closer to the heart of the National Park at the boutique Norfolk Mead hotel or select from a range of different accommodation options, including bed & breakfast and self-catering, including Hall Farm Cottages* and Cotenham Barn* (*min night stays apply).

The Deep History Coast and an area of outstanding natural beauty. This area is aged between 500,000 and 2 million-years-old and stretches along the north Norfolk coast to north Suffolk, it is rich in fossils, including the 650,000-year-old West Runton Mammoth, a 500,000-year-old flint axe and the 850,000-year-old footprints of early man – the first humans to enter Britain. This is Royal Norfolk country where HM The Queen has her much loved country retreat, Sandringham Estate, along with close neighbours Holkham Hall. Seals frequent the stunning Norfolk coastline year-round, and Grey Seals have their pups during the winter season. Stay in a variety of accommodation including The Harper, The Victoria Inn (for Holkham), The Grove, Cromer, The Globe at Wells and Byfords in Holt.

This area in West Norfolk is the region’s natural playground, with ancient forests, rare ‘pingo’ lakes, high ropes, and miles of off-road waymarked walking and cycling trails. Visit ancient flint mines, castles and estates selling and serving the best food from the whole of the East of England.

This is the home of horse racing – experience behind the scenes tours, a day’s racing, and the National Horse Racing Museum.  Cambridge – This is a city where you will find history and culture in abundance throughout its university colleges and buildings.  It’s a city where world-changing discoveries have been made.  A chauffeured tour in one of the famous Cambridge punts is the perfect way to appreciate the full beauty of this architecturally stunning destination.

Home of St Edmundsbury Cathedral, and the ancient Abbey of St Edmund, the patron saint of England. This is a medieval town with the grid system still very much part of the soul of the town. Stay in the Angel Hotel in a bedroom frequented by Charles Dickens. The town also featured in the film The Personal Life of David Copperfield. Head to the wool towns of Lavenham and Long Melford, little changed since their days of glory in medieval times.

The town has over 1,000 years of maritime and agricultural history. It sits on a pretty waterfront with plenty of bars, restaurants, and cafes. You can stay on the waterfront in the contemporary and quirky Salthouse Harbour Hotel. The town is home to the UK’s most significant collection of Constable and Gainsborough paintings and drawings outside of London, housed in Christchurch Mansion.

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