Hurry to Hunstanton. (Hunstanton)

Member Name: Lawrencian

Product:	Hunstanton
Date:	10/07/01 (233 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Slow Pace, Friendly Old Seaside Town., Plently to do or just chill out., Good jWildlife in the area.

Disadvantages: So quiet you could go to sleep for a week.

Have you been to Hunstanton? The first time that I went was in the late 1970's and was surprised how quiet it was. I went there, with my wife and small son after first visiting Kings' Lynne, one Sunday in May. We had a running family joke for many years about Kings' Lynne, which went, something like, "Went to Kings' Lynne once and it was closed".

We visited Hunstanton on the same day and the quietness took a little getting used to. We felt that we had stepped back in time. The feel of Hunstanton is that the World has passed it by, therein lies its wonder.

It is not a very big town, it has a cluster of shops, banks, pubs and in fact everything that one needs of any small town when you are on holiday. There are some very nice hotels and restaurants which are mostly geared up for familes and many guest houses and bed and breakfast establishments that I thought had disappeared during the 60's.

There is a splendid town hall, which enjoyed its centenary in 1996 along with the Methodist Church and the recreation ground. The pier was built in 1870 and the town, at that time was favoured as a health cure. The Victorians were very big on town where you went to be cured of something; either the water or the mud was said to be efficacious!

In the 1950's there was a huge influx of Americans working at nearby Sculthorpe Air Force base and that earned Hunstanton the name of little Brooklyn. In 1953 sixteen of the 31 who died in the infamous and disastrous East Coast floods were in fact Americans. This does not deter the hardier or less sane swimmers taking to the sea on Christmas day each year as they have done since the custom started in 1957.

Following the closure of the railway in the late 1960's Hunstanton almost died as a seaside resort. That it didn't was not helped by the fact that the pier was washed away by a storm in the 1970's By the time of our first visit, th
ey had started the rebuilding programme into which, all the inhabitants put their efforts. Helped by a strong local Borough Council. The Council took over the running of the Princes Theatre, which had become run down. A colourful Oasis Leisure Centre was opened and then the fascinating Sea Life Centre.

The attractions mentioned above bring many visitors to Hunstanton today and although we have visited many times since as late as summer 2000, we will never forget our first visit when the attractions were high lighted by our visit to the unique striped cliffs full of fossils and watching the sun set over the sea. Yes, this is possible in Hunstanton, due to the unique position it occupies on the south side of The Wash. It is one of the only places on the East Coast of Britain where it is possible to see the sun set over the sea!

One thing about the tides in Hunstanton, The Wash empties and fills every tide and mile upon mile of sand can be seen when the tide is out. The sandbanks are treacherous and constantly changing. The fascinating shapes of the channels created by the shifting sand never fail to amaze me. No wonder that King John lost everything in the wash - and you thought that the story was about his laundry!!

One of the best attractions around is Norfolk Lavender where acre upon acre of lavender in many varieties can be seen in bloom and you can obtain dried flowers and essential oils. Another favourite attraction is just along the coast where you can see a sanctuary for birds of all kinds and, if you are lucky, seals basking off the sandbanks.

The Queen's home at Sandringham is only a stones throw from Hunstanton. That is a day out on its own.

All I can say is, Hurry to Hunstanton but slow down when you get there for the best enjoyment of a British Coastal Resort.

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