Blooming lovely! It’s Norfolk’s fabulous flower season
From cottage gardens to grand estates, summer is the best season to enjoy Norfolk’s green spaces and beautiful blossoms, with some fabulous flower shows taking place this month. From our special Sandringham Flower Show Breakto our Sizzling Summer Dinner, Bed & Breakfast Break, with time to explore the coast, book a stay at Heacham Manor and enjoy the blooming lovely displays of Norfolk’s green thumbed gardeners!
North Norfolk’s summer 2024 flower shows
Let’s kick off the summer’s tour of gardens with a coastal nature trail, starting at Holme-next-the-Sea’s Open Gardens, which takes place on Sunday 7 July. Thornham’s quieter neighbour, the village is one of North Norfolk’s most idyllic spots with a gorgeous beach and sits on the Peddars Way and Norfolk Coast Path. Residents come together for the annual event with many gardens in the village setting up stalls with homemade produce and bric-a-brac, and there’s a superb plant stall at Berkeley House – the perfect opportunity to bag some inspiration for your own patch. After browsing the blooms, grab a cuppa and a bite at the Village Hall which will be serving refreshments from 11am–4pm.
If you’re staying with us the following weekend, you’re in for a floral extravaganza with two super shows taking place on Saturday 13 July. Head along the coast road to The Burnhams Flower Show, Fete & Carnival, a traditional village show which has brought together local growers, florists, cooks and crafters for more than 100 years. With 116 categories to enter, there’s plenty to see and do, and stalls and refreshments to keep all ages entertained – don’t miss the scarecrow contest, a fabulous Norfolk favourite!
From here, head to Stanhoe, just inland from Burnham Market, where a number of the village’s private gardens will be on display on 13 July in aid of All Saint’s Church. Tickets are £5 with free entry for under 12s, and a walk around the village and duck pond followed by a cream tea and glass of Pimm’s at the Village Hall is an idyllic way to spend a summer afternoon in sleepy Norfolk.
The Old Hunstanton Flower Festival (takes place over the weekend of 26-28 July and, while a relative newcomer at 49 years, the floral displays in and around St Mary’s Church, which the event supports, are exquisite. This year’s theme is ‘countries’ and alongside the flowers there are plant sales, bric-a-brac, music and food with a hog roast on Saturday night, a dog show on Sunday afternoon and a ‘Songs of Praise’ with the Hunstanton Concert Band on Sunday evening.
Sandringham Flower Show, 31 July 2024
Rounding out the month, the 141st Sandringham Flower Show takes place on Wednesday 31 July and is an unmissable event for horticulturists and ‘have a go’ growers alike.
One of the highlights of the Norfolk calendar, the show attracts around 15,000 visitors and is usually attended by King Charles and Queen Camilla, who tour the marquees to see the incredible floral displays created by amateurs, local gardening clubs and nurseries, before a walk through the crowds – the event is said to be one of the king’s favourites.
With Heacham Manor’s Sandringham Flower Show Break, you can join in the fun and enjoy the day fully with tickets delivered to your home ahead of the event, before joining us for a three-course a la carte dinner and an overnight stay after the show, with breakfast next morning. Book now and experience one of Norfolk’s best days out.
Visit Norfolk gardens in summer 2024
Even if your Norfolk break at Heacham Manor doesn’t coincide with any of the season’s big flower shows, there are still plenty of gorgeous gardens to visit. Right on our doorstep, Norfolk Lavender has the National Plant Collection of lavenders with more than 100 different varieties to see and sniff.
Aside from the Sandringham Flower Show, the 60-acre formal gardens at the royal estate are open from April to October and offer an interesting insight into the tastes of each monarch who has added their style to the grounds since the estate was purchased by King Edward VII in 1863.
Along the coast, the Holkham Walled Garden is an equally impressive and vast six-acre site behind Venetian gates, with Georgian and Victorian greenhouses and the newly restored Samuel Wyatt vinery to explore. As you walk the ‘slips’, each square reveals a new vista including a working kitchen garden that supplies the Hall and estate’s pub, The Vic, an exotic garden and a beautiful cutting garden.
For a modern twist on the English country garden, head to Pensthorpe where Piet Oudolf’s globally recognised Prairie-style Millennium Garden is one of five formal gardens to explore, alongside the nature reserve’s natural site and wildlife.
With gardening widely recognised as being good for our health, boost the benefits of a Norfolk break at Heacham Manor and come enjoy the calming beauty of nature, without the hard work, this summer!