Camping recommendations

[dirty boy]

As i'm relatively new to this camping stuff (and never knew this sub-forum existed till today) i'm keen to get a recommendations and offer my own experiences.

Clearly we're all different. I've done the 5* hotels, and as nice as they are, I've been unable to beat the feeling of sitting round a campfire and gazing at the stars.

Twice this year, we've headed off to deepest darkest Norfolk.

The campsite was http://www.breckfarm.co.uk/

It's a bit basic to be honest, there are sections, those for electric hook up (fairly standard) which is close to the toilets, another 'meadow' field, with quiet time after 9pm - although this is close to where they keep chickens, and can smell a bit, i've also seen numerous rats scupper across the driveway which is next to this field. Nothing major though.

We stayed on the larger 'woodland' field. Right at the bottom, it's on a hill (yes I know cold air falls) but it's next to the woods, and allows for the kids to play pretty much anywhere and be in sight. We took some rope etc, made swings in the woods, generally messed about.

The farm shop sells firewood (£5 a bag) eggs, and marshmallows. Showers are 50p for 3mins (buy tokens in advance) Freezers are free to use, toilets/showers are plentiful and clean, albeit basic.



So....

What's nearby/worth doing??

• Blakeney (7.5m)

Small (very) village
Spar for provisions
Crabbing (this is what we went for)
Mud sliding (if you so desire at low tide)
Parking was £5 for a day

• Cromer (7.7m)

Not my cup of tea, but larger seaside town with plenty of shops
Best place to do a large shop, as they have a big Morrisons, Argos, Halfords if you need anything.

• Sheringham (4.6m)

Nice enough, smaller than Cromer, there's a small Sainsburys
Few boutique style shops, not particularly mainstream
There's also the North Norfolk Railway http://www.nnrailway.co.uk/page.php?pid=3
Get a trip on a Steam Train up to Holt £35 for a family of four, you can stop anywhere along the line. There's a small 'fair' type thing at the end (more money). 5/10 min walk into Holt

• Sheringham Park (4m)

Stunning National Trust area. Lovely walks (family friendly) great views. Flowers out in June!

• Salthouse (3.8m)

Nothing really here apart from there being a chippy on the main road and a nice pub further along (not visited). Anyway, nice evening, grab some chips, then head directly opposite where you could, if desired and had a 4x4 drive onto the beach. You can watch the sun set (off to your left) and the views are quite lovely.

• Wells-next-to-sea (15m)

Crabbing is good here, the town is nice enough, albeit only one street.
There's a nice play park for the kids to unwind, we sat with our cockles whilst this kids played.
Beach huts at the beach (quite a hike from town centre)

• Holkham Beach (17m)

Wow.


Beach as far as the eye can see. Enjoyed playing with my kite, nearly a mile to walk from the car park to the beach (if you're at the back end of the car park - basically a long lane)

• West Runton (5.7m)

Car park £2 for the day, small beach, sandy area at low tide, also loads of rock pools to search in. At high tide, there's not a lot! lol!



There's also the Muckleburgh collection (military) about 2 miles away (didn't do this)

Finally, the A149 coast road is quite nice to drive, VERY narrow in places, lots of small villages to slow right down in, but nice enough not to make the trips to these places nice.

Hope that's helpful?

Edited by dirty boy on Thursday 6th September 11:26

[trilly]

Nice post, not been to Norfolk yet so always good to hear from someone who's done it and enjoyed it.

[anonymous-user]

dirty boy said:

The farm shop sells firewood (£5 a bag) eggs, and marshmallows.

So...marshmallows omelettes over an open fire. Weird.

[West4x4]

North Norfolk is my favorite place in the world, Holkham is an amazing beach

[therealpigdog]

The Three Horseshoes in Warham (not far from Wells) - definitely the best pies in the country by a mile. Proper old fashioned pub with hand pulled beer, homemade lemonade and home cooked food (no chips though). Steak and stilton is probably my favourite, but you can't go wrong with any of them. You can't book a table, so best to turn up early if you want lunch during peak seasons.

+1 for Holkham beach (save for the expensive parking), although be aware that part of it is a naturist beach. My wife got quite a shock on Sunday as we were out for a walk - she hadn't realised how cold it was!

Fresh mussels from Merv's Mussels in Brancaster. Merv runs it out of his garage, with a fridge and an honesty box. Lovely and fresh and great value too.