Norfolk Broads Days Out — 11 Ways to Enjoy Britain's Magical Waterland

The Norfolk Broads — a network of lakes and rivers across a huge, flat, huge-skied landscape — is one of Britain's most underrated family destinations. You don't need a week on a hire boat to enjoy it; here are 11 ways to have a great day, most of them low-cost.

On the water

Hire a day boat

The single best Broads experience: no licence needed, a quick safety briefing, and you're captaining your own boat for a few hours. Wroxham, Potter Heigham and Beccles all have day-boat hire — pack a picnic and puttering along the reed-lined rivers at 4mph is pure calm.

Find Broads day-boat hire →

Take a chauffeured river trip

If you'd rather not steer, hourly guided river trips run from Wroxham and Horning — a relaxed way to see the wildlife with commentary, ideal with young kids or grandparents.

Wildlife and windmills

RSPB Strumpshaw Fen

Boardwalk trails through reedbeds where you can spot marsh harriers, kingfishers and — if you're very lucky — a bittern or a swallowtail butterfly (Britain's largest, found only here). Peaceful and cheap.

How Hill & Toad Hole Cottage

A tiny marshman's cottage museum and a classic drainage windmill, reached by a lovely walk or a short electric-boat trip — the picture-postcard Broads scene.

For families

BeWILDerwood, near Wroxham

An outdoor adventure park of treehouses, zip wires, marsh walks and boat rides, all built around a series of children's books. Low-tech, imaginative and genuinely brilliant for 3–11s. Pre-book.

Wroxham Barns

A family farm with junior rides, animal feeding and craft workshops — a good option for younger children and a rainy morning.

Off the water

• Norwich — a proper day out in itself: a Norman castle, a cathedral, cobbled Elm Hill and a great market.
• The Museum of the Broads, Stalham — steam-boat trips and the story of the waterways.
• Horsey Windpump & the seal beach — a National Trust windpump, and (autumn/winter) one of England's best grey-seal colonies just up the coast.

The rest of the eleven

• Fairhaven Woodland & Water Garden — boardwalks and boat trips through a magical water garden.

Practical notes

The Broads are flat and family-friendly, but the water is deeper and colder than it looks — life jackets for kids on any boat, always. Day-boat hire needs booking ahead in summer, as does BeWILDerwood. The area is a national park with sensitive wildlife, so keep to marked paths at the reserves and take your litter home. And bring sun cream and midge repellent — there's little shade out on the water.