On Saturday morning we hopped into the car and head out on the 2-hour drive eastwards. The first half of the trip was great, blistering down the A14 – but that soon stopped when we hit the windy Suffolk roads. But given that we were driving through some beautiful rolling countryside, we could just about cope with all the corners!
Southwold
Our first stop was Southwold, a coastal town located on the Suffolk coast. Despite it being a cold winters day, we spent ages just messing around the beach near the pier and checking out some of the brightly coloured beach huts. When we started to feel the cold, we would quickly darted onto the pier.
Most English seaside piers are in decline, getting run down, but Southwold Pier is enjoying some renewed popularity. It has got an arcade, coffee shop, a couple of boutique shops and some great views when you get to the end.
We didn’t have our buggy with us, but you could have easily manoeuvred around using 4 wheels.
From the Pier you can easily walk into the town, but the wind has picked up so we jumped into the car. On the high street there’s plenty of little boutiques to rummage in, restaurants and bakeries for those with a rumbling stomach. We ended up stopping at the Adnams Cafe for some lunch. The staff was very friendly and there was lunch menu on offer and our girls enjoyed some kid-friendly pizza.
http://www.visitsouthwold.co.uk/
Framlingham Castle
Less than 30 minutes later and we were in Framlingham. It is definitely a must while visiting Suffolk.
Owned by English Heritage, this medieval English castle inspired Ed Sheeran to write his hit single ‘Castle on the Hill’.
The castle is a great place for a young family to explore. It has lots of interactive displays where children can dress up as historic icons. You can also climb up onto the walls and walk all the way round. But we recommend taking a baby carrier as you are not allowed a pram at the top.
You can do walk around the castle too or stop in cafe for cuppa or a lunch.
The girls truly loved the shop there too. It was full of items for little princess and knights. We loved buying them little princess crowns.
We drove away, under ninety down those country lanes – but singing to “Tiny Dancer”.
https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/framlingham-castle/
Felixstowe
We then headed to our night stop Felixstowe. Now I’m going to be honest with you. Before arriving in Felixstowe, I though it was a grotty-town with massive Port, but how wrong was I!
We stayed at the Best Western Brook Hotel which was conveniently located a 5 minute walk from the the towns 4-mile stretch of beach. The hotel fitted our needs perfectly (friendly staff, a big family room – the girls managed to get all their toys out in it, big sofa bed and a really good breakfast to start the day with).
http://www.brookhotelfelixstowe.com/
On Saturday night, we headed a meal out at The Alex Brasserie http://www.yeogroup.co.uk/the-alex-brasserie/ the bracing sea air definitely gave us quite an appetite, and The Alex met our needs! Good family-family-friendly food, busy atmosphere and great service.
Before leaving on Sunday morning, we headed up to Felixstowe’s Landguard peninsula, which has views over the Orwell estuary and The Port of Felixstowe.You get some great views of the ships coming and going into Felixstowe port right in front of you. It’s actually quite memorising watching all the containers getting loaded on.
Constable Country
It is said that there are only few places in Britain more picturesque than Constable Country in Suffolk. This is where painter John Constable was born and painted some of his most famous works and walking around you felt like it hadn’t changed from his time.
We got around very easily with a buggy. But you just need to watch out for a couple of steps when you come down from the main car park. Additionally you will find there RSPB Centre as well. Interesting place for kids, but as well adults. Really impressive how they involve and show how to love wild creatures. You will find them some bugs house, rare plants and paths that look very creative and fun for kids.
After taking in the views, we had a light lunch at the National Trust cafe.
https://www.visitsuffolk.com/explore/constable-country.aspx
https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/flatford
Colchester Castle
Colchester Castle is actually located in Essex, but as it was on our way home and it was very chill afternoon, we decided to spend here an afternoon exploring the castle inside.
Like with Framlingham castle, you really felt that a lot of thought had gone into keeping children entertained.
We totally loved all the interactive activities done for kids, like dressing up, feeling and examining the exhibits where it was allowed, and being scared (in a good way) in the dungeon.
There’s also a lift which make it very easy to get to the top floor.
https://cimuseums.org.uk/visit/venues/colchester-castle/
We had an amazing weekend! We absolutely loved discovering Suffolk and we will definitely be retuning when it gets a bit warmer!
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