Holme Beach
Overview
Holme Beach is immense – even in high summer it’s never crowded. Behind the beach are deep expanses of grassy dunes where you’ll find striking silver-blue Sea Holly in summer.
The path from the car park to the beach crosses the fairways of the Hunstanton Golf Club. Signs advise you to be aware of flying golf balls.
You can also access the beach via the Norfolk Wildlife Trust car park at the entrance to Holme Dunes Nature Reserve.
The Norfolk Coast Path is not far from the beach – a delightful 3 mile walk will take you to the village of Thornham.
Holme Beach is where “Sea Henge” was famously discovered in 1998. The 4000 year-old early Bronze Age monument, consisting of an upturned tree root surrounded by a timber circle, is now on public display at the Lynn Museum.
Holme is a dog-friendly beach, with no restrictions at any time of year, although keep clear of any areas that are roped off to protect nesting birds.
Key Features
- Fine sand
- Length 3km (1.9mi)
- Pay & display car park 0.5km (0.3mi)
- Nearest bus stop 1.5km (0.9mi)
- Dog friendly, no restrictions
- Public toilets next to car park
- No ramps or access provision
- Kiosk in car park in high season
- No shopping
- No lifeguard services
Holme Beach is so vast and undiscovered that it could never be described as crowded on even the busiest summer’s day. It’s situated on the north-west corner of the North Norfolk Coast, with distant views along the beach to Hunstanton cliffs in the west. To the east there’s nothing but more sand and sea, and you can walk for miles without ever finding anything resembling civilisation. Behind the beach there are deep expanses of grassy dunes for privacy and shelter from the sea breeze.
To reach the beach from the car park you walk to the end of Beach Road and along a path that crosses the undulating fairways of holes 8 and 9 of the Hunstanton Golf Club. Signs advise you to make sure golfers are aware of your presence, and to keep a watch out for flying golf balls. Tall netting is provided to protect beach-goers from balls being launched from the tee-off area on hole number 9.
An alternative access point is via the Norfolk Wildlife Trust car park at the entrance to Holme Dunes Nature Reserve. From the car park there’s a path through a copse of Corsican pine to the eastern end of Holme Beach. Day permits are available in the visitor centre if you wish to spend some time in the reserve.
Heading east from the Beach Road car park entrance, the beach is backed by dunes, marshes and scrub. If you wish to delve into this landscape, the Norfolk Coast Path is set back a couple of hundred metres inland from the beach. It’s a delightful 5km (3mi) walk that takes you through idyllic countryside to the village of Thornham.
Holme Beach is famous as the site where “Sea Henge”, a 4000 year-old early Bronze Age monument, was discovered in 1998. Consisting of an upturned tree root surrounded by a timber circle, it has been described as ‘one of the most exciting and enthralling archaeological discoveries of our time’. Following excavation funded by English Heritage, its timbers have been preserved and the monument now resides on public display at the Lynn Museum.
Holme is a dog-friendly beach, with no restrictions at any time of year. Sections of the dunes are roped off at certain times of the year to protect nesting birds, so please be aware and keep dogs under control near those areas.
The car park at the end of Beach Road is owned by Hunstanton Golf Club and operated by an agent.
The car park is a ‘Phone and Pay or Pay at Machine’ car park and uses ANPR (Automatic Number Plate Recognition).
Pay at the machine or use the ‘Phone and Pay’ app on your phone.
Payment must be made within 15 minutes of arriving on the premises. Failure to pay within the time frame may result in a £100 fine.
There is a height restriction of 6′ 6″ (2 metres) at the entrance to the car park.
Address: Beach Road, Holme-next-the-Sea PE36 6LG
Alternatively there is a car park at the Norfolk Wildlife Trust centre, which provides access to the eastern end of Holme Beach. Take the Broadwater Road turning on the right signposted NNT Reserve just before the beach car park and continue for 2km (1.3mi).
Parking charges apply.
Address: Broadwater Rd, Hunstanton PE36 6LQ
There are spaces for a few cars halfway along Broadwater Road, where you can join the Norfolk Coast Path. To reach the beach you need to walk east along the path a few hundred metres and then cut through the dunes.
Holme Beach is served by the Coastliner 36.
Nearest stop: located at the turning to Beach Road, on the A149 coast road.
Distance: 1.5km (0.9mi)
More information: lynxbus.co.uk
There are public toilets next to the entrance to the car park.
In high season a kiosk sells light refreshments and ice creams in the car park.
If accessing the beach from the Norfolk Wildlife Trust centre car park, the visitor centre has a café, toilets, and a small gift shop.
The village of Holme-next-the-Sea has a pub, the White Horse, around 1.2km (0.7mi) from the beach, postcode PE36 6LH.
Holme Beach is dog friendly, with no restrictions.
Some areas of the dunes may be roped off to protect nesting birds, so please keep dogs under control near those areas.
No lifeguard service at any time of year.
