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Places to visit and things to do in Cromer and Norfolk

On this page you will find just a small selection of the wide variety of places to visit and things to do in Cromer and Norfolk.

If Cromer has not already got enough to offer with its beautiful beaches, cliff top walks, craft shops etc. you can use Cromer as a stepping stone to explore the North Norfolk Coast. This Coastal region is a designated area of outstanding natural beauty and scientific interest, noted for its wildlife, seascapes, creeks and estuaries. Strung along this coast lie a succession of charming villages, Salthouse, Cley, Stiffkey and the towns of Blakeney and Wells (spend a day cockling and picking samphire on Stiffkeys salt marshes or on a boat trip from Morston quays to see the seals).

A short distance from Cromer there is the National Trust house Felbrigg Hall with its lovely gardens and woodland lake walks. A little further inland at Aylsham you have Blickling hall built between 1619 and 1627 with its famous yew walk, and of course one of the finest examples of Palladian architecture in this country Holkham Hall which is further along the coast, its beach made famous by Gywneth Paltrow in "Shakespeare in Love"

A short drive will take you into the Historic Cathedral city of Norwich with its many musuems historic buildings, puppet theatre, Art galleries etc. you can easily lose your self there for a day (or two). In fact why not relax leave your car behind and go by train from Cromer Station, it’s a very pretty journey into Norwich.

Cromer Carnival is a very popular annual event that takes place around the week of the 17th August.

More deatils of all of the of above and much more can be found below.

Family fun

Cromer Carnival

picture of cromer museum

Cromer Carnival is a very popular event that takes place around the week of the 17th August.

The whole week is given over to various events for both children and adults culminating in the carnival procession itself on the eve of carnival day with street parties and barbeques.

Carnival day is a very popular and famous event, great fun, so go with the flow and enjoy the electric atmosphere the event creates. Needless to say if you want to visit Cromer during this week you need to book well in advance.

More information can be found on The Cromer Carnival web site at www.cromercarnival.co.uk

Museums

Cromer Museum

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The people, natural history and geology of the area really come to life in this row of former fishermen's cottages.

Enter the furnished 1890s home of a local fishing couple. Find out about Henry Blogg's famous lifeboat rescues, crab fishing, and genteel holidays in Victorian 'Poppyland', with bathing machines and costumes from neck to knee by law.

The atmosphere is 'cottagey' and the displays simple and straightforward. Through the museum's new computerised information base, visitors can access many of the museum's huge collection of historic photographs and illustrations of local people and places. A copying service available for a small charge.

Cromer Museum hosts a very interesting array of local walks, talks, history days and childrens fun workshops throughout the year.

More information can be found on Cromer Museum's web page on The Norfolk Museums and Archaeology Service's web site at www.museums.norfolk.gov.uk. This site also lists details of many other museums in Norfolk with links to their web pages and a listing of local events.

Address: Cromer Museum, East Cottages, Tucker Street, Cromer, Norfolk, NR27 9HB

Telephone: 01263 513543

Bridewell Museum

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Step into this fourteenth century merchant's house and into the history of trade and industry in England's most esoteric city. Walking through thirteen jam-packed rooms, you discover what has kept Norwich alive since the beginning of the seventeenth century. Its role as an important agricultural hub is seen alongside its history as a centre for the textile and shoe trades.

The Bridewell Museum stands next to St Andrew's Church in Bridewell Alley. This former merchant's house, part of which dates to 1325, became an ‘open’ prison for vagrants, children and women (a Bridewell), before becoming a museum focusing on Norwich life and industry.

There are plenty of things for children to do and the museum regularly promotes holidays workshops.

Displays cover the food industries of Norwich, including flour-milling, brewing, mustard-production and chocolate-making. There are items produced by the city's iron foundries, textile and footwear industries, examples of early fire appliances, and reconstructions of a smithy and a 1930s pharmacy.

Address: Bridewell Museum, Bridewell Alley, Norwich NR2 1AQ

Telephone: 01603 629127

Cromer Lifeboat Museum

picture of a cromer lifeboat

The Cromer Lifeboat Museum and the new Cromer offshore lifeboat at the end of Cromer Pier is something that both children and adults find fascinating.

Elizabethan House Museum

Museum of domestic life in a 16th-century house.

Behind the later façade lies a building dating from 1596, with rooms now displayed to reflect the lives of the families who have lived here through history. Of particular interest are a Tudor bedroom and dining-room, Victorian kitchen, scullery and parlour, and the Conspiracy Room, where the trial and execution of King Charles I were allegedly plotted. There is also a special children’s room with replica toys, and hands-on activities throughout the house.

Address: Elizabethan House Museum, 4 South Quay, Great Yarmouth, NR30 2QH

Telephone: 01493 855746

Strangers' hall

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Home to wealthy merchants and Mayors when Norwich was in its heyday, this beautifully restored building dates back to 1320.

Mayors and Sheriffs of Norwich once lived here, and left traces of their occupation in the fine rooms and fittings which survive. Particular highlights are the stone vaulted Undercroft, dating to 1320, the Tudor Great Hall with its stone mullioned window and screen, and the fine Georgian Dining Room.

The house is set out as a series of interlinked rooms with period settings showing how people lived in the past.

Cromer Museum hosts a very interesting array of local walks, talks, history days and childrens fun workshops throughout the year.

Address:Strangers' hall, Charing Cross, Norwich, NR2 4AL

Telephone: 01603 493636

Historic Houses

Norfolk is a County steeped in history below is a selection of historic houses that are open to the public.

Peckover House

Georgian brick town house with walled garden.

The town house, built c.1722, is renowned for its very fine plaster and wood rococo decoration and includes displays on the Quaker banking family who owned it and the Peckover Bank. The outstanding 0.8ha (2 acre) Victorian garden includes an orangery, summer houses, roses, herbaceous borders, fernery, croquet lawn and 17th-century thatched barn.

Address:Peckover house, North Brink, Wisbech, PE13 1JR

Telephone:01945 583463

Oxburgh Hall

picture of Oxburgh Hall

15th-century moated manor house

This quintessential Tudor house, with its magnificent gatehouse and accessible Priest’s Hole, was built in 1482 by the Bedingfeld family, who still live here. The rooms show the development from medieval austerity to neo-Gothic Victorian comfort, and include an outstanding display of embroidery worked by Mary, Queen of Scots and Bess of Hardwick. The attractive gardens feature a French parterre, walled orchard and kitchen garden. There are delightful woodland walks and an interesting Catholic chapel.

Address:Oxburgh Hall, Oxborough, King's Lynn, PE33 9PS

Telephone:01366 328258

St George’s Guildhall

The largest surviving English medieval guildhall

The building is now converted into an arts centre. Many interesting features survive.

Address:St George’s Guildhall, 27–29 King Street, King's Lynn, PE30 1HA

Telephone:01553 765565

Felbrigg Hall, Garden and Park

picture of Felbrigg Hall

One of the finest 17th-century country houses in East Anglia

The Hall contains its original 18th-century furniture, one of the largest collections of Grand Tour paintings by a single artist, and an outstanding library. The Walled Garden has been restored and features a series of potager gardens, a working dovecote and the National Collection of Colchicums. The park, through which there are waymarked walks, is well known for its magnificent and aged trees. There are also walks to the church and lake and through the 200ha (500 acres) of woods.

Address:Felbrigg, Norwich, NR11 8PR

Telephone:01263 837444

Blickling Hall, Garden and Park

picture of Felbrigg Hall

Magnificent Jacobean house, garden and park

Built in the early 17th century and one of England’s great Jacobean houses, Blickling is famed for its spectacular long gallery, superb plasterwork ceilings and fine collections of furniture, pictures, books and tapestries. The gardens are full of colour throughout the year and the extensive parkland features a lake and a series of beautiful woodland and lakeside walks.

Address:Blickling, Norwich, NR11 6NF

Telephone:01263 738030

Landscape / Parks

Sheringham park

picture of Oxburgh Hall

Landscape park and woodland garden

Designed in 1812 by Humphry Repton, Sheringham Park is one of his most outstanding achievements. The large woodland garden is particularly famous for its spectacular show of rhododendrons and azaleas (flowering mid May to June). There are stunning views of the coast and countryside from the viewing towers and many delightful waymarked walks through the park and mature woods, including a route to the North Norfolk Railway Station (a private full-gauge steam railway).

Address:Sheringham Park, Upper Sheringham, NR26 8TB

Telephone:01263 823778

Windpower

Horsey Windpump

picture of Oxburgh Hall

Restored five-storey drainage windpump

A viewpoint affords striking views across Horsey Mere, one of the Norfolk Broads, and there is access to the beach at Horsey Gap. The mere is particularly well known for wintering wild fowl.

Address:Horsey Windpump, Great Yarmouth, NR29 4EF

Telephone:01493 393904

Boat trips

Temples Seal Trips

picture of Oxburgh Hall

SEALS in their natural environment

Take a boat trip to see the SEALS in their natural environment basking on BLAKENEY POINT You will be taken to see the seals on and around Blakeney Point. The views are stunning and what better chance to breathe in the fresh sea air of the North Norfolk Coast. Each trip will take you close to the Common and Grey Seals basking in their home ground. The pups of the Common Seal are born between June and August, with Grey Seal pups being born between October and December.

When possible you will land you on the point, an internationally famous breeding and feeding ground for migrant birds. This is a unique and unforgettable experience and a must for all bird lovers. There are Turn colonies nesting there each year, which is a spectacular sight between mid-April and the end of July. It is also home to a wide variety of other species of birds such as Oyster Catcher, Ringed Plover and Shelduck.

Contact:Ticket office at The Anchor Pub, Morston

Telephone:01263 740791

Rail Trips

The Bittern Line

picture of Oxburgh Hall

Norwich to Cromer and Sheringham local railway

The line is some 30 miles long, connecting the magnificent city of Norwich with the north Norfolk coastal towns of Cromer and Sheringham, via the Norfolk Broads at Salhouse, Hoveton and Wroxham. Its name recognises a special, local bird, which has a distinctive booming call. Anglia Railways operates a regular, almost hourly service along the route (less frequent on Sundays) which has been described as "One of the most picturesque lines in the country".

The Bittern Line has something for everyone - it offers a wide range of things to do for passengers of all ages. Take a gentle stroll around Norwich, along the north Norfolk coast, or on the more demanding Weavers' Way long distance footpath, which passes nearby Bittern Line stations . Hire a bike or bring your own on the train (don't forget to book your bike in advance) and explore the quiet country lanes (ask for the Bittern Line Cycle Guide when you book your bike or buy your ticket).

Contact: www.bitternline.com

Sports - Tennis

Cromer Lawn Tennis and Squash Club

Tennis and squash

The club welcomes tennis, squash, and social members and is also open to the general public who may play at the club at non-member rates.

Booking is advisable during the busy summer season and at peak times in the winter months.

Address:Norwich Road, Cromer Norfolk NR27 0EX

Telephone:01263 513741

Sports - Riding

There are nearby riding schools, in West Runton and just outside Cromer.

Sports - Golf

Cromer has a Royal golf course.

Eating out - Fish

Mary Jane's Fish Bar

Quality fish predominates on the menu with a choice of cod, haddock, plaice, rock and skate, all served skin-on unless otherwise requested.

Address:27-29 Garden Street, Cromer, NR27 9PL

Telephone:01263 511208

Bolton's Bistro

Fresh fish dishes including Cromer Crab and (when in season) Local Lobster

Address:The Cliftonville Hotel, Seafront, Cromer, Norfolk NR27 9AS

Telephone:01263 512543

Eating out - Modern

Jacque Restaurant

Modern European

Address:9 Garden Street, Cromer Norfolk, NR27 9HN

Telephone:01263 512 149

Eating out - Chinese

Le Moon Chinese Restaurant

Chinese

Address:5A Prince of Wales Road, Cromer, Norfolk NR27 9HR

Telephone:01263 511615

We hope you enjoyed our website.

Good luck and please remember us ( Cromer Cottages ) if you or a friend are visiting Cromer or Norfolk and are looking for a holiday cottage to rent.

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