Canal Camping

No visit to the Norfolk Broads is complete without getting out onto the waterways that make the place so famous. Woven together with meandering rivers and snaking streams, the broads create an interconnected watery wonderland. And it’s campsites like Canal Camping that really make the most of this natural treasure. Why pitch anywhere else when, here, you can pop your tent right down by the riverside and slip your canoe or kayak straight into the water? And speaking of Canoe, Canal Camping gives you the opportunity of hiring a Canoe, and if that isn't enough adventurous, they also have Paddle boards available! (For more information please contact the site.)

Made up of little more than a grassy meadow, with a shower and toilet cabin at one end, a covered washing-up space and drinking water taps dotted about, this simple tent-only campsite offers camping on a casual scale. There are no designated pitches – simply find a nice spot that suits – and campfires are very much permitted, with the scent of wood smoke in the air and the sound of crackling logs backtracking the birds.

On one side of the wash-cabin an OS map is pinned to the wall. It’s a good way to get your bearings before you go out in a boat or take off by bike. You can see the canal running through the local village of Dilham, from Wayford Bridge to Antingham. It was built in the 19th century to help transport agricultural goods and, while today parts are being restored to their former beauty, other stretches have not changed for more than 100 years, retaining a semi-wild charm where nature has taken over. Further south, meanwhile, the waters feed into the large lake at Ant Broads and Marshes National Nature Reserve, where you can explore on boardwalks and signed pathways.

In total, the national park has 125 miles of navigable waterways, so you’re never going to see it all. But Canal Camping certainly offers a very enviable starting point. Between marshmallow toasting, jaunts to the nearby pub and enjoying the laid-back atmosphere of the camping meadow, getting out and about always takes a little more time than you expected. But that’s the pace of life this riverside place can’t help but instil: Slow, relaxed and meandering.