for the best in nordic walking, guided walks and weekends away

Brecon Beacons    Black Mountains    Dovedale    Dorset & Jurassic Coast    New Forest & Isle of Wight

Tuesday 6 - Friday 9 May

(3 nights) (Easy A grade: 4-6 miles daily)

Friday 9 - Monday 12 May

(3 nights) (B grade: 7-9 miles daily)

Walking in the footsteps of Benjamin Britten,

England’s best-known 20th-century composer,

under wide East Anglian skies

Wonderful walking through a rich and varied landscape full of history, an amazing mosaic of shingle beaches, crumbling cliffs, marshes, estuaries, heathland, forests and farmland, and a source of inspiration to countless artists, writers and musicians. Enjoy Suffolk’s remote, unspoilt, tranquil and subtle beauty, still largely spared from modern development.

There are no hills at all on any of these walks!

Itinerary

Tuesday or Friday (Both ‘A’ and ‘B’ Grades)
After a welcome meeting, our evening walk explores the delights of Aldeburgh, from the shore to its picturesque back streets, before we dine together in the hotel's award-winning restaurant.

Saturday (‘B’ Grade)
A short drive to the unique setting of Snape Maltings, home of Benjamin Britten’s Aldeburgh Festival and the world famous concert hall. We join a riverside path, threading our way through reedbeds, to visit the remote and beautiful church at Iken. Then our route takes us inland through landscapes dominated by the sky and shaped by the power of wind and sea, finally arriving at the charming old port of Orford, seemingly unchanged since Turner painted it in the 19th century. Here we visit the impressive castle, a near-perfect example of a Norman Keep with panoramic views of the surrounding countryside. We also visit Orford’s quaint quay with its views over the River Alde to Orford Ness before returning by bus to Snape Maltings to explore its craft shops and art galleries, take tea, or perhaps both. (Picnic lunch supplied). (9 miles, 'A/B' grade)

Wednesday (‘A’ Grade)
A shortened version of the above walk will enable ‘A’ grade walkers to enjoy all the highlights described above. Instead of walking from The Maltings to Orford via Iken, we follow a circular route between Iken and the Maltings and then, after lunch, drive to Orford, thus reducing the mileage to 5 miles. (5 miles, ‘A’ grade)

Sunday (‘B’ Grade)
By coach to Southwold and a walk which hugs a beautiful, unspoilt stretch of coast past the pier, picturesque lighthouse and colourful beach huts. From the harbour, alive with fishing boats and fishermen’s huts, we cross the River Blyth to Walberswick. We thread our way through a sea of reedbeds to meet our RSPB guide for a short introductory talk on the reserve and its birds. Our last group were lucky enough to spot the rare bittern and it is quite likely you will see marsh harriers flying overhead. May is an ideal time too for avocets. Lunch (not included) at delightful tearooms before we reach the lost city of Dunwich, once the capital of East Anglia, now reduced by the advancing sea to a tiny fishing village. Finally, following the coastal path, we cross Dunwich Heath to the National Trust coastguard cottages for tea while we await our return coach. (9 miles, ‘A/B’ grade)

Thursday (‘A’ Grade)
A shortened version of the above walk will enable ‘A’ grade walkers to enjoy all the highlights described above, apart from Southwold. The coach will drop us at the harbour to reduce the mileage to 5.5 miles. (5.5 miles, ‘A’ grade)

Friday ‘A’ Grade or Monday ‘B’ Grade
For those staying 3 nights, a morning visit to the RSPB’s flagship reserve, Minsmere, for a two-hour guided walk with an expert RSPB guide: cost £5. Excellent lunch at Minsmere.

        The Brudenell Hotel, Aldeburgh

Availability

as at 4 April 2008

‘A’ Grade 6-9 May 2008

Single Occupancy, Double or Twin    2

‘B’ Grade 9-11 May 2008

Single Occupancy, Double or Twin    1

Travel & Transport

By rail direct two-hourly trains from London Liverpool Street to Saxmundham (2.20 hours) with onward travel by taxi or bus (6 miles). We can arrange taxi-sharing if required. By road: Total mileage from central London: 110 miles; (2.40 hours). We may be able to arrange car sharing if required. Limited car parking at the hotel; adjacent public carpark.

Shared cars will be required for the 15-minute journey to the start of the walk on Saturday; some further short journeys by car necessary on the Wednesday ‘A’ Grade walk. On both the Sunday and Thursday, coach transport is supplied

The Brudenell Hotel, Aldeburgh

A privately-owned hotel, a step away from the beach with panoramic sea views. One of the Independent’s and The Daily Mail’s top ten seaside hotels, the Brudenell has also achieved an AA quality rating of 85%, the highest score of any 3-star hotel on the Suffolk coast, and runner up in the Small Hotel category in the 2004 Tourist Board awards. Johansen’s prestigious hotel guide describes it as ‘the epitome of a charming contemporary seaside hideaway with a light, airy and relaxed ambience, whose inspector “loved watching the sun glistening on the waves from so many windows.”’

Price per person: £310 for 3 nights (doubles, twins and singles in single rooms); £10 per person per night supplement for single occupancy of double or twin rooms; seaview or marshview rooms may be booked at a supplement subject to availability

Accommodation: 7 single, 5 single occupancies of double rooms (at a supplement), 4 double, 2 twin rooms