We ditched Cornwall for North Norfolk — and found a coast Britain forgot

After years of joining the slow crawl to Cornwall, Lee Ness and his wife decided they’d had enough of the traffic and the crowds. This autumn they turned east instead, hiring a motorhome and taking their two dogs to North Norfolk — a part of the country they’d somehow never visited. What they found was space, quiet roads and long stretches of unspoilt coast

As anyone who has crawled along the A30 behind a convoy of caravans knows, Cornwall has become a victim of its own beauty. For much of the year, its main artery becomes a slow procession of roof boxes and paddleboards, and by August even the wildest headlands are packed with tourists.

For years my wife, Mandy, and I joined the migration south each autumn. We knew where to find the best pasties, the quietest beaches, and the pubs that still take dogs. But the queues along the M5 and into Cornwall now stretch well beyond summer, and the thought of another stop-start crawl through holiday traffic had lost its appeal. This September we gave up on the idea entirely.

Cornwall, we decided, could manage without us.

So we turned the map around and went east instead of west. North Norfolk, of all places – a county we had somehow managed to overlook for more than fifty years each. Between us, that’s 112 years on the clock without ever setting foot there. It seemed reason enough to go.

It was with absolutely no knowledge whatsoever, and having intentionally done very little research other than finding a place to stay, that we took our rented motorhome and our two dogs, Tash and Tilly, to this wild and undiscovered wilderness nestled in East Anglia.

Our Dog-Friendly Norfolk Base

Our choice of location was Deepdale Camping and Rooms, an award-winning, eco-friendly spot. It has pitches for tents, motorhomes, RVs, and roof tents, as well as private rooms for rent. The site comes highly recommended and scores 4.9 on TripAdvisor from 1,262 reviews, at the time of writing.

The site did not disappoint. The location is beautiful on a gentle hillside, with convenient stores and pop-up shops at the entrance. It’s also a very short walk to the wild beauty of the Norfolk Salt Marshes.

The pitches are all generously sized, and there are plenty of very clean shower and toilet blocks across the site. There were even warm dog showers for those of us with furry friends. This proved particularly beneficial when our most mischievous dog decided to go paddling in a boggy stream and ended up covered in thick black, tar-like mud that smelled foul.

Decoupling and Getting Back to Nature

This area is not for those looking for a hustle and bustle city break. This is for people who want to decouple and get back to nature and simple pleasures. It is a perfect place to destress from modern living.

From the Deepdale site, there are two main walking directions along a section of the 83 mile long Norfolk Coast Path, which runs from Hunsanton in the West to Hopton on Sea in the East.

Taking the right-hand path from The Drove is a wildlife walk along the sea defence berm. It runs alongside Mow Creek and then Trowland Creek. We went as far as Red Sluice bridge before returning, as this is basically an out-and-back walk perfect for bird watching or just taking in the landscape.

The All-Day Walk to Brancaster Beach

The second walking route has a little more enchantment. It is an all-day walk for most people if you cover the full distance, like we did, along the route to Brancaster Beach. This was a bracing 4.5 miles each way.

It is a flat walk which is well-appointed, either gravel or boardwalk. Nothing strenuous, other than the distance, but with plenty to see and do along the way.

The scenery is beautiful, with salt flats as far as the eye can see. We passed the Marshside Bar of The White Horse pub on the way out but saved that treat for the return.

The treat for the outbound walk was a visit to The Crab Hut next to Brancaster Staithe Quay. A wide selection of seafood sub rolls or seafood pots are available at the little hut, which also gets a well-deserved 4.8 TripAdvisor rating. Mandy had a Crayfish pot and I had to go for the classic Crab Sub.

The fresh fish was delicious and made for a perfect light lunch break on our walk.

Bracing Tides and Local History

We then continued along the path, edged by beautiful purple-fronded Norfolk reeds and onto Brancaster Beach.

At low tide, the beach is vast due to its shallow, gentle slope. When we estimated it, the sea was a good 500m from the shore; it can go as far as 1km. This exposes miles and miles of beautiful sand to walk on, and the beach is blissfully dog-friendly.

The same tidal range can cause the opposite issue. The Storm Surge of December 2013, for instance, created a 3m tidal surge that caused £1bn in damage and was the biggest surge in the UK for 60 years. At various points along the walk, you can see markers of where the tide rose to.

After a coffee at the beach hut, which was completely covered in the surge (evidenced by the line marked near the roof), we headed back the way we had come. We were looking forward to a more thorough inspection of the Marshside bar.

Dinner at The White Horse

This bar is the conveniently located bar and outside seating right on the edge of the Coastal Path, part of The White Horse Pub.

If you don’t wish to partake in the outdoor life at the campsite, staying at The White Horse is a fantastic alternative, with rooms that have views over the salt marshes and the coast. The White Horse itself is an award-winning gastro-pub that has a fine menu. It is a perfect luxurious hub for visiting this part of Norfolk and gives options for further exploration via the Coastliner hop-on, hop-off bus that stops right outside.

The menus at the main pub and the Marshside bar aren’t the same, but both are very tempting and, of course, feature a fantastic range of seafood.

It only seemed polite to enjoy the Brancaster Brewery Ale with a snack of Crispy Squid before returning back to Deepdale.

The campsite has a food van most nights. Having enjoyed sourdough pizza the night before, we had been looking forward to fish and chips. It felt more appropriate for our current van-life than the higher-end fare at the Marshside, and we weren’t disappointed.

A final glass of red wine or two by the fire outside the motorhome with fish and chips out of the paper finished a perfect visit. It may have been our first visit to Norfolk, but it will not be our last to this undiscovered gem.

Fact File: Dog-Friendly Motorhome Escape to Norfolk

Getting There

• By road: Around three hours from London via the A11 or A148. Allow extra time; overtaking opportunities are rare and tractors plentiful.
• By motorhome hire: Peer-to-peer platforms such as Goboony and Yescapa offer a wide choice of pet-friendly vehicles from £80–£150 per night including insurance.

Where to Stay
• Deepdale Camping & Rooms, Burnham Deepdale, Norfolk PE31 8DD – deepdalecamping.co.uk
Award-winning, eco-friendly site offering pitches for tents, campervans and motorhomes, plus private ensuite rooms. Immaculate facilities, generous pitches, and warm dog showers. From £25 per night for a motorhome pitch.

Walking Routes
• Norfolk Coast Path: 83 miles from Hunstanton to Hopton-on-Sea. From Deepdale, walk east or west along raised sea banks overlooking tidal creeks and marshes.
• Brancaster Beach Walk: Roughly 4½ miles each way from Deepdale. Flat, well-signed and dog-friendly all year. Vast sands at low tide, with storm-surge markers showing where the sea rose in 2013.

Food & Drink
• The Crab Hut, Brancaster Staithe Quay – crabhutbrancaster.co.uk
Simple harbour-side kiosk serving fresh seafood subs and pots. Try the crab sub or crayfish pot. Seasonal hours; 4.8★ TripAdvisor rating.

• The White Horse, Brancaster Staithe – whitehorsebrancaster.co.uk
Award-winning gastro-pub and hotel with panoramic marsh views. The Marshside Bar suits windswept walkers; the main restaurant offers refined seafood and local Brancaster Brewery ales.

• Deepdale Food Vans: Rotating local pop-ups serve wood-fired pizza, curries, and fish & chips most evenings.

Dog-Friendly Notes
• Dogs welcome at Deepdale, The Crab Hut (outdoor tables) and The White Horse terrace.
• Warm dog shower at the campsite; long off-lead walking along the coastal path and Brancaster Beach.
• Check tide times before venturing onto the sands — the sea returns quickly.

When to Go
• Spring and autumn offer mild weather, bright skies and fewer crowds.
• Summer brings longer days but busier beaches; winter is starkly beautiful and near-empty.

Costs to Expect
• Motorhome hire: £80–£150 per night
• Deepdale pitch: from £25 per night
• Seafood lunch: around £10 per person
• Dinner for two with drinks at The White Horse: around £100

Lee Ness is a freelance writer and author with a background in sport and travel. Over the course of his career he has written extensively on destinations across Europe and beyond, combining practical insight with clear and engaging storytelling. He is the author of five novels and a non-fiction book, and continues to balance his journalism with long-form writing projects.

READ MORE: ‘We took our dogs on a motorhome city break to Cambridge – here’s what happened’. As the crowds thin and the leaves turn, autumn is the perfect time to discover Cambridge by motorhome. In this dog-friendly city break, travel writer Lee Ness explores cobbled streets, riverside walks and welcoming pubs, all while road-testing the freedom of life on the open road with a hired van.

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_{Main image: Blakeney, North Norfolk. Credit, Stephen Noulton/Pexels}