We have returned from a fantastic week staying in Wells-next-the-Sea in North Norfolk.
We stayed at a lovely cottage called Harbour View. Although the name of the cottage wasn’t entirely accurate, it was a really lovely place to stay. It was a perfect distance from the town centre and harbour.
Before going, we didn’t know anyone else who had ever been to Wells-next-the-Sea. Well now, we will be recommending it to anyone. It is beautiful!
It wasn’t perfect though – I’ll start with some of its faults before telling you why I love it!
The traffic is pretty horrendous. There are cars everywhere. This makes parking a problem. The beach is a mile’s walk from the harbour and so people always choose to drive up. That walk is horrendous! We tried to park up at 9.30am and were sent away as the car park was full.
The pubs seem to shut early – even at the weekends. It was so weird – by 9pm there was barely anywhere to go!
The other drawback about Wells is that it is miles away from everywhere else. Anywhere else you’d like to visit is at least half an hour away.
Really, if these are the only flaws, then they pale into insignificance compared to everything else!
Harbour
The Harbour is beautiful. It really is picturesque. There are stunning boats and yachts to look at and there always seems to be something on the move. The buildings that overlook the harbour make it look very quaint – I love the Granary building in particular. There is a horse statue in the harbour. Apparently it is placed in a slightly different location each year. As the tide moves in, you see a little bit less of the horse until you can just make out the top.
Crab fishing
The harbour is a great location for crabfishing. We caught loads! A great way to fill an hour!
Park
Although we didn’t use it on holiday, there is a nice looking park for the children to play in, just next to the football ground.
Chips shops
As someone who is gluten intolerant, I was delighted to see that both of the chip shops sell gluten free fish and chips. They were delicious. The rest of my family don’t need to be GF and they loved theirs too!
Shops
There are a range of different shops to visit. There was an art gallery which was due to open just after we left. You could buy lots of nice souvenirs from the shops along Staithe Street. There was a nice deli and a sweet shop. We all managed to find something we liked from the various store.
Pubs and food
Although the pubs didn’t seem to open late, every pub was really smart and most served food. The food in The Crown looked particularly nice! There was a pizza place, a seafood restaurant and a delicious gelato shop!
Arcades
We won thousands of tickets in the arcade by the harbour. I’m not exaggerating. On one game I won over 1,200 tickets in one turn! There was something for everyone in there!
The Maltings
The local theatre and community use building was really smart. The people who worked there were friendly and welcoming. We went along to the family bingo one evening and had a great time.
The beach
The beach is absolutely stunning. The beach huts look brilliant. It really feels like a unique place. The sea is really shallow there so the children could paddle for miles.
Lifeboat Centre
The new lifeboat centre was due to open after we visited. But it looked really smart.
There was so much to do that we didn’t quite manage it all, as we wanted to visit other places. We missed out on Holkham Hall, which I believe is very much worth a visit, and the light railway. The great thing is, that we have reasons to visit again in the future.