A beach, a steam train, a big country house, an old flint church… ask anyone to list the holiday sights of North Norfolk and, chances are, they’ll mention everything within two miles of Gresham Hall Glamping. The new bell tent location, tucked away in the village of Aylmerton, over the hedge from the village pond, has a seriously convenient location. It somehow manages the feat of being five minutes drive from the beach and five minutes walk from the National Trust’s Felbrigg Hall, yet still eschews the holiday crowds. It’s also remarkably comfortable, which surely seals the deal.
There are just seven bell tents in the meadow, each comfortably sleeping a family of four, with grown-ups in a proper double bed and room for children on air mattresses to the side. Almost everything you need is provided. There’s a box of crockery, cutlery, and utensils, and a picnic table and firepit outside. Heating comes in the form of a toasty wood-burning stove, which adds a lovely atmosphere on cooler evenings, and there’s also an electric blanket for the double bed.
As cosy as each bell tent seems, you’ll likely spend more time outside. There’s ample space to play in the meadow, with views of the round-towered church in the background and the hot showers and loos at one end of the field. A track, a matter of yards from the meadow entrance, traces the short walk to the Felbrigg Estate, a fabulous place for family picnics overlooking the sheep- and cattle-dotted parkland, and the local roads are quiet enough for cycling – head south through Gresham past the church and the hall from which the glampsite takes its name. If it weren’t for the steep hill back up we’d suggest cycling the 10 minutes to the beach in West Runton too (more like 20 minutes on the way back), with sands that run to Sheringham in the east and Cromer in the west, just a small taste of the miles of coastline within easy reach.