The best beaches in Norfolk with kids

The UK is blessed with some amazing coastline, but one of my favourite parts of the country has to be the fabulous beaches in Norfolk with kids – when the tide’s out, there seems to be twice as much sky and sand here as almost anywhere else.

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Huge stretches of sand backed by dunes, often with hardly anyone else in sight, plus the chance to spot seals and gorgeous beach huts as well as making sandcastles? Sign me right up.

So I’ve picked out some of the best beaches in Norfolk with kids, whether you’re looking to escape the crowds, searching for dog-friendly beaches or fancy somewhere with plenty of facilities for toddlers.

And the best part? There’s around 90 miles of coast in Norfolk, so you’re never far from the beach, including six Blue Flag beaches at Cromer, Sheringham, Sea Palling, Mundesley, West Runton and East Runton.

Wells-next-the-Sea

One of the best-known beaches in Norfolk, Wells-next-the-Sea is famous for its backdrop of brightly coloured beach huts – you can even hire some of them – as well as the little train which runs from the beach.

If you’re looking for a patch of sand with more facilities, this is the place to pick: there’s a café, toilets, lifeguards… even a branch of Joules as well as some shaded dunes and tide pools to paddle in.

Unsurprisingly, it’s also one of the most popular beaches in Norfolk and the car park gets booked up fast, especially in summer, so be prepared to get there early.

Skip the queues to pay for your ticket by using the app if you’re visiting at peak times (but do it before you head down to the beach, to make sure there’s signal).

At low tide, the beach goes out a mile so you’re not short of space once you’re on the sand though.

And it’s another dog-friendly beach year-round: there is a dog-free zone (from the first 200 yards of beach from the main entrance, clearly signed) but if you head in from the pinewoods, the only restrictions are at bird nesting time when some areas are roped off and dogs have to remain on leads.

For more details of the Wells & Walsingham Light railway, check out my post on the best things to do in Norfolk with kids

Holkham

Holkham beach is one of those endless unspoiled stretches of sand that are perfect for kite flying and racing along – no surprise it has been voted the best beach in Britain.

You can walk through the pine forest on the boardwalks here to get to the beach too, and when the tide is out, you’ll find shallow pools to paddle in, perfect with younger kids.

Another hugely popular one, it pays to get here early but there’s also the bonus of being able to combine it with some of the other attractions of the Holkham Estate, including the Hall, deer park and nature reserve.

Dogs are also welcome on the majority of the beach here off-lead: in some stretches they need to be kept on lead from April to August, and certain areas are completely off-limits to protect the bird life.

It’s also worth knowing that the west end of Holkham beach is popular with naturists.

Horsey Gap

If you want to combine beach and seals, Horsey Gap is hard to beat – you can also spot seals from Blakeney Point as well as taking boat tours, although that’s not somewhere to build sandcastles: we loved our cruise out with Beans Boat Trips.

At Horsey, grey seals come ashore to mate and give birth during late autumn and winter, and the sand is crowded with seals and their newborn pups between November and the end of January, if you’re visiting Norfolk in winter.

You can go down onto the beach to see them, but always keep at least a 10m distance away and never get between a seal pup and its mother.

If you’re visiting in summer, don’t assume you’ll be disappointed though. When we last visited in May, there were seals swimming just off shore along the beach, so we could paddle and watch them play in the waves at the same time.

Dogs are welcome outside the pupping season, although it’s best to keep them away from any seals which are on the beach or in the sea during the rest of the year too.

You can also visit Horsey Windpump, a National Trust-owned windmill, not far from the beach.

For more ideas of beach activities with kids while you’re at the seaside, check out my tips

Winterton-on-Sea

One of my own favourites, there’s a walk through the dunes to get to this huge unspoiled sandy beach, and along with nearby Horsey, it’s another good place to spot seals swimming.

There is also a small cafe and toilets by the car park – one word of warning, only cash is accepted for parking unlike most other beach car parks which have the option to use an app/card. It’s worth hunting out the coins though!

The beach here is also dog-friendly year-round.

Brancaster Beach

The coast where you’ll find Brancaster beach is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty – special for its nature as well as its scenery, but also a fantastic beach in Norfolk with kids.

For starters, there is just so much sand. Literally miles of golden beach to wander along, whether you’re blowing the cobwebs away or soaking up the sun – and for dog owners, it’s one of the best dog-friendly beaches in Norfolk.

There is a small dog-free zone between May to September – head left once you walk onto the beach from the entrance if you prefer a paw-free area.

At low tide, you can even see a shipwreck, the remains of the SS Vina, stuck on a sandbank – don’t try to walk out to it for a better view as it’s too dangerous though. There’s also a beach kiosk and parking.

Cromer

If you’re looking for a taste of traditional seaside but without too much funfair glitz, this Victorian resort is perfect.

As well as the iconic pier stretching off into the sea, there’s a sand and shingle beach with lifeguards, plus you don’t have to wander far towards Overstrand before you reach quieter stretches as well, for a great walk along the beach.

There are all the facilities to hand here, with plenty of ice cream and fish and chip shops just off the beachfront, as well as the usual shops. It’s easy to park too: be prepared to walk a little way from the biggest car parks.

If you’re visiting in summer, this is one for dog owners to avoid though – dogs aren’t allowed on the beach at Cromer from May to September.

Great Yarmouth

If you want a classic seaside resort with rides, funfairs and amusements, you need Great Yarmouth and The Golden Mile.

There’s a big sandy beach by the town as well but the biggest temptation here is the family-friendly attractions: you’ll find the Great Yarmouth SeaLife Centre, one of two in Norfolk, as well as rollercoasters at the Pleasure Beach, a ferris wheel and a waterpark is planned for 2022 at the Marina Centre.

North beach, beyond Britannia Pier, and South beach, beyond Wellington Pier, are both quieter than the main Great Yarmouth beach if you do want a more chilled-out day that’s still close to the facilities, and both are also dog-friendly. Dogs aren’t allowed on Great Yarmouth beach itself.

Sheringham

For another beach that’s a stone’s throw from the town, try Sheringham – quieter than Great Yarmouth, the sands here are backed with a string of cafes on the promenade and the town’s museums.

The Blue Flag beach is shingly as well as sand, and this is one to explore at low tide when you can find rock pools and the best sandcastle building moments – at high tide, the beach all but vanishes.

There are also lifeguards in the summer, plus showers as well as toilets, and beach huts to hire.

The beach is popular with families and two teams of RNLI lifeguards operate during the summer months. There are public toilets and showers and beach huts are available for hire.

It’s also a fun place to spot street art, with murals dotted all over Sheringham. From May to September, dogs are only permitted in one zone, so you need to avoid the main section of beach in front of the town.

Hunstanton

Hunstanton’s red and white striped cliffs are famous, and you’re also walking distance from a Sea Life Centre here if you find yourself facing an unexpected rainy day in Norfolk with kids – as a bonus, it’s one of only a handful of beaches on the east coast which face west, so it’s a perfect spot to watch the sunrise and sunset.

One of the busier north Norfolk beaches, there’s a mini train along the promenade too. If you’re visiting with older kids, this is also a great place for windsurfers and kitesurfers, thanks to the shallower waters.

There’s also fossil-hunting for ammonites – do stay away from the base of the cliffs though, in case of falling rocks, and avoid high tide, which comes in very quickly here.

Old Hunstanton beach is also dog-friendly year-round, although they are banned from Hunstanton Main Beach.

For my beach essentials with kids, check out my top picks for fun on the sand

Caister-on-Sea

Not far from the border with Suffolk, this is one place to go to escape the crowds – despite the holiday park just behind the dunes, the beach here never seems to get crowded.

There’s also an unusual view looking out to the wind farm just off the coast, and a great walk along the cliff path towards Great Yarmouth where you can wander down to the boardwalk along the route.

Bring everything you need with you though: there’s a car park with toilets next to it, but you won’t find much else here apart from an ice cream van. It’s dog friendly with no restrictions year-round.

Happisburgh

Lighthouse spotters will love Happisburgh beach – pronounced ‘Haze-bruh’ – with an 18th century red and white striped lighthouse here, apparently the oldest working one in the UK.

There’s parking at the top of the cliffs and a slope down to the sand, as well as some bonus ancient history – the oldest known footprints of early humans outside Africa were discovered here.

Another of our favourite sections of the Deep History Coast, there’s a lovely walk between Happisburgh and Cart Gap once you’ve finished enjoying the sand.

While erosion is a problem around the Norfolk coast (and elsewhere), there have been some major slips here so you may find part of the cliff path blocked though (and don’t sit right up against the cliffs).

Happisburgh beach is also dog friendly year-round.

West Runton

Another Blue Flag beach, West Runton is between Sheringham and Cromer if you’re looking for a quieter alternative to the town beaches.

And it’s also a fantastic spot for rockpooling when the tide is out, revealing the sand alongside the shingle too. In fact, it’s fantastic for fossil-hunters all round.

Home to the largest chalk reef in Europe (which makes it popular with divers and surfers as well), there are fossils in the sandstone cliffs and the most complete example of a fossilized steppe mammoth skeleton was found here.

There are toilets and a cafe here too, and dogs are welcome in some areas year-round, although banned in the section east of the slipway from May to September.

Mundesley

Another lovely beach lined with beach huts, Mundesley Beach is a good option if you want to swim – best at low tide – and paddle, as well as winning a Blue Flag award for its cleanliness.

It’s another north Norfolk spot where the sand seems to stretch out forever at low tide (although that temptingly smooth expanse can soak through your beach towel in minutes, as I discovered one summer!)

There’s a lovely clifftop walk in Mundesley if you fancy exploring a bit further, as well as gardens – plus if you’re following the Deep History Coast app, this is one place where you can collect a mammoth. And who doesn’t want to do that?

There are lifeguards in summer and car parking nearby. Dogs are banned from most of the beach between May and September although there’s is one dog-friendly zone.

Sea Palling

Another of Norfolk’s Blue Flag beaches, Sea Palling is almost exactly half-way between Cromer and Great Yarmouth so it’s a good option if you’re looking to escape to a quieter sandy beach.

As you gaze out to the waves, you can ponder the fact that there are nine artificial reefs here, created as part of a flood prevention scheme – if you’re not having too much fun splashing around, building sandcastles and playing on the sand dunes, of course.

There are lifeguards on duty in summer, as well as toilets and cafes, plus a car park not far from the beach.

Dogs can’t go onto the beach in front of the main Clink Road car park from May to September, but are otherwise welcome on the beach here.

PIN FOR LATER: THE BEST BEACHES IN NORFOLK WITH KIDS

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