Family breaks: Fun and frolics on a Norfolk beach

With the prospect of summer around the corner and the Easter holidays being consumed with a late but very enjoyable family ski holiday, the kids were desperate for a trip to the beach. The problem was where to go – living right bang slap in the middle of the country, there is no obvious choice. In the end we chose Norfolk, as we have friends nearby who we can always drop in on if the weather is atrocious.  As luck would have it, not only were our friends around but they also invited us to stay the night, so we could make the most of our family day out.

The next thing was what to take with us. My husband always sighs in disbelief as I get ready for our holidays – I have this strange need to be prepared for every occasion that might arise, but we end up only using a small fraction of it and I get the ‘told you so’ look on our return.  With this in mind, I decided on clothes for each day and only one spare set for each child (in case of disaster), plus one pair of versatile shoes.  The latter was quite simple as we’d all just acquired new Crocs for the summer – classic styles for the boys and sparkly pumps and flip flops for us girls (in pink, of course). They’re lightweight, comfy and durable enough for both walking and paddling.

We arrived in Old Hunstanton on Saturday evening in torrential rain, but with high hopes that the next day would be better. To our relief it was. Old Hunstanton beach is one of the only villages on the east coast to face west, and though we couldn’t stay long enough to witness one, we were told it boasts amazing sunsets over the Wash.  The broad sandy beach, lined on one side with the tidal sea and on the other with bristly sand dunes, immediately conjured up memories of childhood beach trips – of playing elaborate games of tag for hours and hours, of hiding between the sand dunes and making dramatic leaps between them on high-speed chases.  My two kids, 6 and 4, soon got into the spirit, running, jumping and sliding down the dunes with great delight.

We are fortunate that our friends own one of the beach huts hidden behind the sand dunes, and picnic blankets and even cutlery were on hand for our elaborate lunch. It also meant that sand sandwiches were not on the menu – another gripe of my husband’s, although to me they are just another source of nostalgia about family holiday memories. For those who want to emulate us, I noticed that one or two of the private huts at Old Hunstanton can be hired, while further up the coast in the larger seaside resort of Hunstanton (or Sunny Hunny as it’s known), there are council-owned beach huts (or chalets) that can be hired out on daily or weekly basis, from about £17 per day.

Except for the odd passing dog-walker and the kite-flyers further down the beach, it felt as though we had the huge expanse of Old Hunstanton beach to ourselves.  The kids were truly in their element, collecting sea-shells and playing with a boat in a patch of sandy water while I snapped away with the camera and made the most of the gorgeous sea air. But as we walked towards the sea for a quick paddle before heading home, I felt my daughter’s hand tighten on mine and looked down to see tears streaming down her face. Thinking the worst, we tried to figure out what could be wrong – sand in her eyes, a blister, a cut from one of the razor shells she had been collecting? 

It quickly became apparent as I looked down at her feet. ‘Look at my new shoes!’ she screamed, ‘They’re ruined!’

I looked down to see sloppy brown sand covering her lovely pink Crocs. Quickly whipping them off her feet, I ran down to the sea and brought them back as good as new. The tears subsided and we were back on an even keel. If only every tantrum was as easy to overcome.

We left the beach that day planning another trip to Old Hunstanton, having had our ‘beach fix’ as well as a fantastic family break.  It is the simple things that make family holidays great and a sandy beach is definitely high on my own tick list.

To win pair of Crocs for everybody in your family enter our Crocs competition and if you want to see the latest range of Crocs, please visit the Crocs website.