Today we combine a nostalgic steam train ride with a cruise on the Norfolk Broads. We begin at Aylsham where we join the Bure Valley Railway for the 9-mile ride to Wroxham. Our journey runs through the pretty Bure Valley countryside following the meandering River Bure through meadowland and ancient pasture. Along the line are wayside halts serving the picturesque Broadland villages of Brampton, Buxton, and Coltishall. At Wroxham, we join the boat for a cruise around the Broads, taking in some of the delightful Broad’s villages, such as Woodbastwick, with its diminutive green and thatched cottages.
We travel to the resort of Cromer, on the northeast coast of Norfolk. A short break here before we continue to Sheringham to enjoy some sea air and another train ride. This time, it is a steam train on the Poppy Line from Sheringham to Holt – a pretty, Georgian market town with lots of little alleyways to explore.
Today, we visit Houghton Hall & Gardens. Built for Britain’s first Prime Minister, Sir Robert Walpole, in the 1720s, Houghton Hall is now home to the 7
th Marquess of Cholmondeley – a descendant of Sir Robert, and his family. The Hall is set in extensive parkland, with its famous white, fallow deer, an award-winning Walled Garden, the Model Soldier Museum (the world’s largest private collection of model soldiers), a café, and a gift shop.
