I’ve scaled much of Norfolk since setting up Routes for Little Boots in my quest to find family-friendly walks. I’ve been delighted to find there are absolutely loads! Narrowing down a list for the whole of Norfolk is quite hard, so this list focuses on Norwich and the surrounding area.
There are so many places in and around Norwich that are super accessible, have facilities and are great for kids, most obviously the brilliant parks (such as Eaton Park, Waterloo Park, Whitlingham Country Park, Heigham Park, Wensum Park, Sloughbottom Park and Catton Park). There are also routes planned in and around the city centre, such as the Treasure Trails, Munzee Trails and Nooks & Crannies Walks. However, the list below includes places that I hadn’t discovered before I started my quest and I’m hoping there will be something new in there for most people!
- Taverham Mill
- Ladybelt Country Park
- The UEA lake
- Danby Wood/Marston Marshes
- Wensum Walk
- Ringland
- Marriott’s Way
- Boudicca Way: Caistor St. Edmund Teasel Walk – High Ash Farm
- Plantation Gardens
- Upgate Common (Swannington)
- Taverham Mill (NR8 6TA)
Taverham Mill is one of my favourite new places to visit. It has been open as a nature reserve for just a few years and is only a short drive out of Norwich. I’ve visited here in both the winter and summer and I thought the lakes were breathtaking on both occasions.
The nature reserve is beautiful. It has two main walks. The red route is the longer and is dog-friendly – it loops round the whole site, starting alongside the River Wensum. The blue route takes you round the lakes and I can’t recommend it highly enough as the views are stunning. Everything is so luscious and green this time of year and there is an abundance of wildlife. The kids love it! There’s a lovely little bridge for toddler pooh sticks and there’s a working weir at the start of the walk too.
Both routes are accessible for pushchairs (if a tad bumpy in places) and the website says it is accessible for wheelchair users, with most of the nature trail being either low-level grass or boardwalk.
The visitor centre has a gift shop and sells light refreshments. There are toilets with baby changing facilities and disabled-access toilets at the visitor centre. There is also a great play area.
- Parking: Yes – free
- Entry fee: Family tickets: £10, Adults: £3.50, Kids under 5 free
- Refreshment facilities: Yes – drinks, confectionary and ice-creams in the visitor centre
- Availability of toilets: Yes, including baby change and disabled-access
- Surfaces: Largely accessible for pushchairs – low level grass, woodland track or boardwalk
- Obstacles: None
- Seating availability: Picnic benches, a bird hide and various tree stumps!
- Play area: Yes
- Dog friendly: Yes (red route only)
- More info at: https://anglianwaterparks.co.uk/taverham-mill
- Ladybelt Country Park (NR14 8JB)
I only recently found this and it’s also one of my new favourite places! It’s about two miles from where I live in Cringleford and I never knew it was there…
The park has been carefully nurtured back into a wildlife haven by the parish council. It’s mainly grassland and flat so fine for pushchairs and I’m hopeful it will remain so in the winter. I reckon it’s about 1.5 miles round – my toddler walked all the way round, albeit with multiple stoppages for some of the lovely things on offer… picnic benches, wooden sculptures, trees to climb in and an old ice house that you can’t get inside but is great for echoes!
With the lovely weather we’re having this summer, I think it’s perfect for a picnic. There are no other facilities there (it does randomly have a recycling plant hidden away in the middle so watch the lorries) but it does have its own little car park (free parking).
It’s dog friendly but they need to be on leads in spring and summer due to nesting wildlife.
We loved it. Loads of nature and open space. Great views. Just off the A11 so hopefully nice and accessible for most people.
- Parking: Yes – free
- Entry fee: Free
- Refreshment facilities: No
- Availability of toilets: No (but lots of bushes)
- Surfaces: Largely accessible – mainly low-level grass and woodland track (halfway round the grass did get a bit longer)
- Obstacles: None
- Seating availability: Benches and picnic bench
- Play area: No
- Dog friendly: Yes (but on leads in the spring and summer)
- More info at: https://www.facebook.com/ladybeltpark/
- The UEA lake (and surrounding area) (NR4 7ED)
I only discovered this area a few years ago. It’s such a lovely walk with so many different routes to take off it, such as the Yare Valley Trail, Cringleford Woods and the walk through to Earlham Park.
The lake is about a mile round. It’s a bit bumpy as it has a compacted stony path for much of it and some stretches can get a bit muddy after heavy rain, but we used to take our pushchair down there. There are lots of places to stop and sit too. There are picnic benches and BBQ stands and dogs love the small bay area. The bridge half way round is one of the best in town for pooh sticks!
When it’s a little drier, the Yare Valley Trail links up to Eaton (it comes out opposite Waitrose and there is a small car park there too), so we used to walk through to the Red Lion or Cellar House to make it a pub walk. From the UEA lake, the path is boarded for about half a mile but the latter stretch towards Eaton is a little less pushchair-friendly as the path is narrower in places and is definitely prone to mud squish. We assessed it as ‘pushchair tolerable’ in dry weather but I wouldn’t bother in the winter!
- Parking: Yes – free on Bluebell Road/North Park Avenue (NR4 7ED) or paid for at main UEA car park
- Entry fee: Free
- Refreshment facilities: No
- Availability of toilets: No
- Surfaces: Largely accessible if a bit bumpy – stony compact surface but muddy in patches after heavy rain
- Obstacles: None
- Seating availability: Benches and picnic benches
- Play area: No
- Dog friendly: Yes
- More info at:
- Danby Wood & Marston Marsh (NR4 6LY)
This is a beautiful, yet tiny, wood and is a fantastic short walk for toddlers. I last visited in autumn and it was stunning. As it is a woodland, in soggier times a pushchair might struggle, but during dry, summer months a pushchair will be able to handle it (although you’ll have to pull it up a short set of steps near the car park). The main draw for me was the fab play area across the common. It’s barely half a mile but I think that makes it a great option if you just need to get out of the house and stretch your legs!
To extend the walk, you can also visit Marston Marsh which is just down the Marston-Eaton link path along the edge of Eaton Golf Course. This does have a kissing gate which I haven’t tried to get a pushchair through to date, but in my experience, they’re not really accessible for pushchairs. I usually just walk half-way round the marsh path as you then go through a gate into a field with grazing cattle – I’m not a fan!
Probably one that is better for toddlers or a baby carrier, but thought it was worth a mention.
- Parking: Yes – a small car park (also near to the Holiday Inn Ipswich Road)
- Entry fee: Free
- Refreshment facilities: No – but The Holiday Inn and The Marsh Harrier are nearby
- Availability of toilets: No
- Surfaces: Woodland walkway – no manmade surfaces. A bit squishy after heavy rain
- Obstacles: Some steps at the beginning
- Seating availability: Yes – at the play area
- Play area/interesting features: Yes – it’s fab
- Dog friendly: Yes – but not in the play area
- More info at:
- Wensum Walk (Starting at the Adam and Eve Pub – NR3 1RZ)
This is a short but pretty walk by the River Wensum. We started at The Adam and Eve car park and headed towards the Jarrold Bridge and then turned right along the river path. The paths are hard surfaced, so really accessible for city pushchairs.
Cow Tower is fabulous fodder for a toddler’s inquisitive nature so we spent a fair few minutes poking around! You can’t go far inside but can see through the iron gate.
The route then bends round along the river, and we headed straight over Bishopsgate towards Pulls Ferry which is one of the sweetest spots in Norwich! It was once a 15th-century watergate and the building is named after John Pull, who ran the ferry across the Wensum from 1796 to 1841.
We then walked up Ferry Lane to the Cathedral and had lunch. The Cathedral Refectory is a great place to stop and has baby change facilities and a great ambience. You can head out of the Cathedral grounds North East and head back to the car park along Bishopsgate, but we retraced our steps as we enjoyed the walk so much! It’s only a short walk to the Cathedral (estimate about 1 – 1.5 miles)
- Parking: Pay & Display (standard Council charges)
- Entry fee: Free
- Refreshment facilities: The Red Lion and Adam and Eve are on the route, but The Cathedral Refectory is the closest with baby change facilities
- Availability of toilets: As above
- Surfaces: All paved
- Obstacles: None
- Seating availability: Yes
- Play area: No
- Dog friendly: Yes
- More info at:
- Ringland (NR8 6AB)
This is a great walk, with beautiful views across the countryside and Ringland village. There is a great guide to download via Broadland District Council website (see link below). I’ve done a short stretch and a longer stretch with our toddler. The shorter stretch from Pitt Farm to Royal Hill and then back down through the village is pushchair friendly, although there are no paths in places through the village. The longer stretch (as highlighted on the map on the link below) is one for a baby carrier or older children as there are barriers such as styles.
The views from the top of Royal Hill are beautiful. We parked at the Swan as we stopped there for lunch afterwards (but parking is for patrons only). You can park by the river near the pub or at the Church or the Village Hall. The Swan has a great outdoor play area and is dog friendly, which is why it’s one of our favourite family walks – the staff have been so friendly when we’ve been. Ringland is a really pretty area – Ringland Hills are only a short distance away too, but I haven’t checked these out recently with ‘parent eyes’ to see how family friendly they are.
- Parking: Yes, at The Swan, by the river near the pub, at the Church or Village Hall
- Entrance fee: None
- Refreshment facilities: Yes, the Swan
- Availability of toilets: Yes, The Swan
- Surfaces: Accessible – firm dirt track (on the shorter route – the longer route on the map below is not really accessible for wheels)
- Obstacles: None on the shorter walk, styles on the longer walk
- Seating availability: No
- Play area: Yes, at the Swan
- Dog friendly: Yes (including in the pub)
- More info at:
- Marriott’s Way (NR2 4HJ)
This is possibly one of my favourite places in the world. I’ve run, walked and cycled my way over this path for miles and I love it all year round. It is a 26 mile footpath, bridleway and cycle route, which follows the routes of two disused railway lines, running between Norwich and Aylsham.
It starts by Halfords at the bottom of Barn Road in Norwich and the first few miles are surfaced which makes it really easy to travel along (this stretch links up to Wensum Park and Sloughbottom Park which have play areas and other facilities). Norfolk Trails have recently restored the old station platform at Lower Hellesdon and there are numerous railway sculptures along the way to celebrate the trail’s heritage.
My favourite stretches are all between New Costessey and Lenwade. Attlebridge is particularly pretty, with its own car parking area and beautiful views across the River Wensum. Another lovely stretch is between Fir Covet Road in Taverham and Attlebridge (parking available at Fir Covet Road).
- Parking: Yes – I tend to park:
- On the road at Hellesdon Rd, Norwich NR6 5EG
- Fir Covert Rd, Taverham, Norwich NR10 4DT
- Station Road, Attlebridge, NR9 5AA
- Entry fee: Free
- Refreshment facilities: Depends on the stretch. There is a café at Whitwell Station, The Cock/Red Lion and a Tesco at Drayton/Thorpe Marriott
- Availability of toilets: Many trees and bushes
- Surfaces: Tarmacked between Norwich and Costessey, but from that point onwards it is natural compact surface although still very accessible. A bit squishy in places after wet weather
- Obstacles: None
- Seating availability: Yes, if quite dispersed
- Play area: No
- Dog friendly: Yes
- More info at:
- Boudicca Way: Caistor St. Edmund: Teasel Walk – High Ash Farm (NR14 8QN)
This is a lovely circular walk which takes in part of the Boudicca Way. The walk that we have tried (once in the summer and again in the winter) has been created by High Ash Farm. We have only walked short stretches as our toddler insisted on walking, but the map in the link below outlines the various routes that can be taken.
It’s a lovely neck of the woods. We parked at the site of the Roman Town at Caistor St. Edmund. There is also a circular walk on the same side of the road as the car park, but instead, we crossed the road and walked past the Roman cemetery site (following the Teasel Walk).
We travelled the route clockwise, turning left towards Foxes Grove, and followed the path from there. The next couple of hundred metres can get muddy in the winter but should be okay in the summer. Our toddler loved the short woodland walk through Foxes Grove. We had a short rest at some seats made out of a fallen tree and then followed the path before stopping briefly at a man-made pond and water feature. We travelled up the path a short distance before hitting our mid-point: an ‘empty’ tree that my daughter finds fascinating! We stayed there for quite a while…
It took us 35-40 min to the tree, walking slowly and making plenty of stops. It was only about a mile but the circular walks on the map would make decent walks for a pushchair. We really enjoyed it though! The surface was great in the summer and there’s interesting features to pique the interests of small children.
- Parking: Yes (free)
- Entry fee: Free
- Refreshment facilities: No
- Availability of toilets: No
- Surfaces: Natural surfaces, leaving it dependent on weather conditions. Worth wearing wellies in winter
- Obstacles: None
- Seating availability: Yes
- Play area: No but a few nice natural features along the walk
- Dog friendly: Yes
- More info at:
- http://www.highashfarm.com/walks/ (there’s a map on this site)
- http://www.norwichaccessgroup.org.uk/BoudiccaLeafletv4.pdf
- The Plantation Gardens (NR2 3DB)
This is a little treasure tucked away near the Roman Catholic Cathedral. It has a Gothic fountain, a Medieval wall, a rustic bridge, woodland walkways and beautiful lawns and is a Grade II English Heritage registered garden.
We first visited here in winter when there was nothing in bloom save a few winter flowering pansies, but it was still a feast of fun for toddlers.
With a pushchair it wouldn’t really count as a walk as such as you will only be able to access the bottom level (which still has plenty to offer), but it would be a great add-on to a lunch meet-up or a summer picnic. I’m hopefully going back soon to see it in the summer as I’ve heard it is beautiful.
- Parking: No car park, but there is paid for parking adjacent to the garden on Earlham Road
- Entry Fee: Adults: £2, Under 16s: Free
- Refreshment facilities: No – but The Georgian Townhouse, The Black Horse, The Earlham Arms, Bread Source and The Mitre are nearby
- Availability of toilets: Yes but only open on Sunday afternoons during the summer teas season – again the local pubs will be your best bet or there are also accessible toilets at the Narthex at the neighbouring St. John’s Cathedral.
- Surfaces: Hard surfaces on the lower level, walkways on the higher level aren’t hardcore surfaces but were easy to walk along.
- Obstacles: None as such, but the upper levels aren’t for pushchairs
- Seating availability: Yes
- Play area/: No but it’s certainly full of interesting features, nooks and crannies
- Dog friendly: Guide dogs only
- More info at:
- Upgate Common (Swannington) (NR9 5AH)
I adore this walk. It’s one of those places you feel is a bit of a secret and you don’t want to share with the world! But that would be uncharitable of me. It’s perfect for the hot weather at the moment to stop us from melting, as most is under the cover of the trees.
The approx postcode is NR9 5AH – as you come into Swannington from the direction of Norwich, there is a double bend, and on the second bend you can turn into a small parking area near two houses on the right hand side.
I would NOT say this walk is pushchair friendly though – it’s okay in most places but I always opted for the baby carrier. It is, however, fab for toddlers and dogs! There’s several routes you can take but we always opt to walk alongside the stream and then cross the bridge – the path then takes you up to a meadow with stunning views across the valley.
You can carry on round near Farm to Fork and through the village, but we’ve normally worn her out by then, so turn back. Great place to stop and have a picnic on a sunny day! There’s nothing by way of facilities on the walk but there’s a pub in the village that serves food. It’s a proper little explorer’s adventure and the bridge is great for pooh sticks!
- Parking: Free – a small grassed area (point 2 on the map on the link below)
- Entry Fee: Free
- Refreshment facilities: No
- Availability of toilets: No but very rural for alfresco rest breaks
- Surfaces: Woodland surfaces – quite rooty in places
- Obstacles: Very muddy areas have planks laid down that are not suitable for pushchairs
- Seating availability: Yes
- Play area: No
- Dog friendly: Yes
- More info at:
Well that’s it for now! I hope you find something new in there and enjoy them – we certainly have!
