Cycling holiday East-Anglia

From Harwich harbour, you board the train to Needham Market. Here you leave your luggage and begin your cycle tour. From Needham Market, you cycle into the hilly countryside today. Before long, you’ll be cycling past meadows, through patches of woodland and along back roads, passing charming villages with beautiful cottages and even more stunning country houses. On the way, you’ll pass through Dedham and, near the end of the route, cycle into the small but medieval-looking village of Stoke-by-Nayland, with its large church and centuries-old half-timbered houses. After a final stretch through the woods, you’ll arrive at the Stoke-by-Nayland Resort (with its beautiful golf course), where you’ll be staying the night.

Today you’ll cycle to Bury St Edmunds. Along the way, you’ll pass through villages with centuries-old churches, houses and cottages, such as the beautiful Lavenham, which boasts over 300 listed buildings and served as the model for ‘Godric’s Hollow’ in the Harry Potter films. You’ll also face regular climbs, followed by steep descents, before finally arriving in the small but charming town of Bury St Edmunds. Cycle through the Abbey Gardens to your hotel. Tip: Once you arrive, head into town and pay a visit to “The Nutshell”, Britain’s smallest pub, or the Greene King Brewery.

Today, you’ll cycle from Bury St Edmunds to Harleston. Little by little, the mansions and cottages give way to farms and sweeping fields. The landscape remains hilly, and you’ll have a good chance of spotting deer (which may well just cross the road). Halfway along the route, you’ll pass The Four Horseshoes Inn: a cosy English pub with a terrace where some locals have been coming for their daily pint for over 50 years. At the end of the ride, you’ll arrive in peaceful Harleston.

Today you’ll cycle back from Norfolk to Suffolk. You’ll soon be following a rural route past sweeping fields and farms. Just over halfway through the journey, you’ll reach Framlingham, where you can visit the castle ruins. From there, you’ll continue on to the charming town of Woodbridge or a resort just outside Melton, where you’ll be staying for two nights.

From Woodbridge, you can enjoy a lovely circular ride. Along country roads and ‘Quiet Lanes’, past fields and woods, you’ll cycle alongside the River Alde. Passing through the village of Snape, famous for Snape Maltings (a Victorian malt house), and Orford, with Orford Ness – Europe’s largest overgrown sandbank – on the other side of the water, you’ll cycle partly through woodland back to Woodbridge.

This is the final leg of your journey through East Anglia. You’ve got plenty of time today, so the route takes you first to Sutton Hoo: an archaeological site just outside Woodbridge. Here you can visit a museum displaying (replicas of) the artefacts found at the site, and there are several walks to choose from (ranging from about 30 minutes to an hour). Afterwards, you’ll cycle back to Woodbridge and, via Helmingham Gardens and past cottages and mansions once more, you’ll return to Needham Market. Tonight, you’ll take the train back to Harwich and the overnight ferry back to the Netherlands.