Diversity is Suffolk’s watchword; within its small borders there’s a surprisingly wide range of attractions and experiences – everything from boat trips in the southernmost reaches of the Broads National Park to a visit to an icon of the Industrial Revolution (which, incidentally, is not far from one of the country’s largest nuclear reactors). Meanwhile, you can choose between nature in Minsmere, culture in Aldeburgh and booze in Southwold.
For more inspiration, explore our Suffolk guide and the area’s best hotels, restaurants and nightlife.
Find things to do by area
Inner Suffolk
Take to the water in Beccles
Beccles is a beautiful Georgian town located upriver on the Suffolk-Norfolk border and is worth a visit for that alone. But it’s also the southernmost navigable point of the Broads National Park, so it’s the perfect place to take a day boat or kayak and hit the water. You can do this at the family-run Hippersons Shipyard in the city, or at Rowan Craft or Three Rivers near Geldeston. If you’re after something different then the latter has its own floating wood-fired sauna.
An insider tip: If you’d rather have someone else do the driving, you can take the Big Dog Ferry and stop at the excellent Locks Inn for a beer or two.
Swing among the trees in Thetford Forest
Thetford Forest, on the border between Norfolk and Suffolk, is made for Go Ape’s zip lines and rope bridges, and there’s also a branch of the treetop adventure park on hand. Take your family with you and enjoy a jungle adventure not only at Go Ape but on the many trails and bike trails in the forest. Book in advance and first check if your kids are old enough (and tall enough) for the main Tree Top Adventure.
Insider tip: Before or after, enjoy a meal at the Elveden Inn or the excellent Courtyard Restaurant, both part of the extensive Elveden Estate.
To contact: goape.co.uk
Price:££
See the sights of Lavenham
Perhaps the most idyllic of central Suffolk’s wool towns – and certainly the best known and most visited – Lavenham is the jewel in the crown of inland Suffolk: a small town with creakier, leaning wooden houses than you can shake. . The main market square is at the heart of it all and is home to the town’s National Trust-run Guildhall, where you can see an exhibition of the town’s history. You should also visit the church of St Peter and St Paul on the hill; this is the best evidence of the wealth and piety of 16th-century Lavenham.
Insider tip: Among the many good options in Lavenham, a good place for lunch is the brasserie in the historic Swan Hotel; An excellent two-course lunch is served here for £22.50.
Discover one of the best places to live in Britain
Regularly voted as one of the best places to live in Britain, Framlingham’s top tourist attraction is its castle, which was home to Mary Tudor in the 1550s and dominates the town and is well-done by local boy Ed Sheeran. You can walk around the 12th-century defensive walls, still topped with Tudor-style chimneys, and enjoy beautiful views of the surrounding countryside.
Insider tip: Don’t forget to visit the impressive medieval church of St. Michael, right next door; it houses one of the world’s most beautiful collections of funerary monuments.
To contact: english-heritage.org.uk
Price: £
Suffolk Coast
Try your hand at gin making
It’s not often you come across a working brewery in a city centre these days, but that’s exactly what you get in Southwold. Despite its genteel reputation, the beer fumes from the long-running local brewery Adnams still waft every day. Tours are regular and very popular, and take around an hour to see the brewery’s main features and sample a beer or two. They’ve also started distilling gin, so you can tour the distillery too.
Insider tip: Follow the site on certain days, you can make your own gin.
To contact: adnams.co.uk
Price: ££
Go twitching in Minsmere
It’s hard to believe now, but Dunwich’s tranquil coastline was a large and important medieval port before the sea swept it away. You might enjoy visiting the ruins of a monastery, touring the local museum and even exploring some offshore submarine ruins, but the real draw of this little town is the wonderful RSPB bird reserve at nearby Minsmere, where visitors can walk the lagoons. watching for birds and perhaps the odd otter among the reeds.
Insider tip: If you get hungry, you can enjoy excellent fish and chips at Flora Tea Rooms in Dunwich, or pop into the quaint Ship Inn for a beer or a bite to eat.
To contact: rspb.org.uk
Price: £
Discover one of England’s most famous composers
Red House, on the outskirts of the city, was once home to Benjamin Britten and is now home to a museum full of artefacts relating to Britain’s most famous 20th-century composer. Among the various outbuildings are the library, still filled with Britten and Pears’ collection of furniture, books and paintings, and the studio where he composed the ‘War Requiem’ and other late works.
Insider tip: Try to time your visit to coincide with one of the tours of the house, which is filled with a significant collection of 20th-century art by Pears and Britten.
To contact: brittenpearsarts.org
Price:£
Research Anglo-Saxon history
Sutton Hoo is perhaps the most important Anglo-Saxon archaeological site in the country – the burial site of a warrior king buried in a forty-oared ship with a hoard of treasure in the early seventh century. You can see the main burial mound, along with several others, a model of the ship and a short film, and unfortunately only a few of the main finds, most of which are in the British Museum.
Insider’s tip: Tranmer House is a late 1940s balloon used by the women’s Land Army during the war, and the graffiti on it proves it.
To contact: nationaltrust.org.uk/sutton-hoo
Price: £
Experience Suffolk’s industrial revolution
The nondescript town of Leiston isn’t generally considered among Suffolk’s best places to visit. This is a pity because the Long Shop Museum is home to the Leiston Works, an authentic and atmospheric icon of the 19th century that produced steam-powered machines and exported its products all over the world. Not only that, but the founder’s daughters, Elizabeth Garrett Anderson and Millicent Fawcett, became two of the most famous and influential women of their era.
Insider tip: Stroll towards Sizewell and enjoy a hot drink at Sizewell Tea, a convenient beach cafe with good food in the shadow of the nuclear power station.
To contact: longshopmuseum.co.uk
Price: £
Visit a town that time forgot
In a peaceful corner of the Suffolk Coast, sheltered by the long stretch of land of Orford Ness, Orford is one of those places where roads end; It’s a sleepy village-little town divided between the market square and the 12th-century castle keep and a dock area where you can take trips to Orford Ness National Nature Reserve and the RSPB reserve on nearby Halvergate Island.
Insider’s tip: Make sure you come hungry; there are plenty of eateries in the main square, or stop by Pinney’s on the harbourside for seafood to take home.
How do we choose
Every attraction and activity on this curated list has been tried and tested by our destination expert to give you the insider’s perspective. From world-class museums to family-friendly theme parks, we cover a variety of budgets and styles to best suit every type of traveler. We update this list regularly to keep up with the latest openings and provide up-to-date recommendations.