The Southeast is England’s
most populated and prosperous region. Despite the development there
is wide variety of rural and heritage attractions, together with
major coastal resorts. Interests range from the traditional seaside
spots of Brighton, Great Yarmouth and Southend-on-Sea
to historic cities like Cambridge, Colchester, Norwich
and St Albans. The charms of ‘Constable Country’,
along the Suffolk/Essex border, attract many visitors, as do the
more urban sites of Windsor and Dover,
with their mighty castles.
The following tourist boards cover the ‘Home Counties’
of Bedfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire,
Kent, Surrey, East Sussex, and West Sussex,
and the East Anglian counties of Cambridgeshire, Essex,
Norfolk and Suffolk.
South
East England Tourist Board (telephone: (01892) 540 766; fax:
(01892) 511 008; email: enquiries@tourismse.com).
East
of England Tourist Board (telephone: (0870) 225 4800; fax: (0870)
225 4890; email:
information@eetb.org.uk).
Southern Tourist Board (telephone: (023) 8062 5400;
fax: (023) 8062 0010; email: enquiries@tourismse.com).
Kent
Is known as the ‘Garden of England’ for its production
of fruit, hops and garden produce, Kent is the southeasternmost
county in England. Canterbury is the visitor magnet,
retaining much of its Medieval charm. Canterbury Cathedral, where
Thomas à Becket was slain in 1170, is the headquarters of
the Anglican Church. Nearby, St Martin’s Church is one of
the oldest churches still in use.
At Dover, the main cross-channel port, the massive
Norman Dover Castle rises above the famous White Cliffs, while the
White Cliffs Experience offers a multimedia interpretation of the
town’s importance over the centuries. Rochester
is a charming town with strong Dickensian connections.
Tunbridge Wells, in the west, is an 18th-century
spa town. Highlights in the county include Hever Castle, childhood
home of Anne Boleyn, and Leeds Castle, considered to be the world’s
most beautiful.
Surrey and East/West
Sussex
London now swallows up much of Surrey, but towns like Guildford
still retain a historic charm. Attractions include Thorpe Park and
Chessington World of Adventure, both are theme parks.
In Sussex, Brighton is probably the most popular
and lively of the southeast resorts, made famous by the Prince Regent
(later George IV) who ordered the opulent Pavilion to be built here.
Eastbourne is a more restrained Victorian
resort town, while Hastings was the landing place for the Normans
in 1066, and nearby Battle stands by the field in which Harold I
was killed.
Roman Chichester, west of
Sussex, is famed for its arts festival and the nearby Fishbourne
Palace – the remains of the largest Roman villa yet discovered
in Britain.
Essex and Hertfordshire
Colchester, county town of Essex, is Britain’s
oldest city, continuously settled since pre-Roman times. Norman
Colchester Castle was built on Roman foundations with the largest
keep of any such building.
The Essex coast runs from the fringes of London in the south, and
Southend-on-Sea has been the traditional resort for East Londoners.
Further to the north are the resorts of Clacton-on-Sea,
Frinton and Walton-on-the-Naze,
together with the port of Harwich.
Hertfordshire’s places of interest include the Roman city
of St Albans (Verulamiam). Part of the walls, foundations
of Roman houses and a temple remain, while the Verulamiam Museum
displays archaeological finds.
Berkshire
The jewel in Berkshire’s crown is Windsor,
whose castle is one of the Queen’s official residences and
is open to visitors. It has been a royal home for almost 900 years
since the time of William I. Guided tours of the town, bus tours
and river cruises are available.
Nearby is the 19 sq km or 7.3 sq miles Windsor Great Park.
Some 3km or 2 miles outside the town is Legoland, a family attraction.
Elsewhere in Berkshire, Slough is the main commercial
centre, while Maidenhead and Marlow
are riverside towns on the banks of the Thames.
Bedfordshire
and Buckinghamshire
The rolling Chiltern Hills of Buckinghamshire are within easy reach
of London, with pleasant countryside and quiet villages. At Amersham,
the Chiltern Open Air Museum boasts five centuries of local life.
Near Aylesbury, Waddesdon Manor is a Victorian
stately home. The ‘new town’ of Milton Keynes
is the county’s largest town, with a wide range of shopping
and leisure pursuits. Bedfordshire’s main visitor attraction
is Woburn Abbey, home of the Dukes of Bedford since
the mid-1550s, and surrounded by Britain’s largest Safari
Park. Close to Dunstable, animals are the main focus at Whipsnade
Zoo.
Cambridgeshire (See
also the Top
Seven Destinations section.)
Outside the city of Cambridge, this county consists
of agricultural countryside, especially in the artificially drained
Fenlands of the north. Highlights include Ely,
with its Cathedral (known as ‘Ship of the Fens’). Cromwell’s
House, home of the late Lord Protector, is open to the public and
home to the Tourist Information Centre.
Peterborough,
in the northwest, boasts a fine Cathedral, and the Nene Valley Railway.
Close to the Norfolk border is Wisbech, an inland
port and typical fenland village.
Norfolk
and Suffolk
Norwich, ‘capital’
of East Anglia and county town of Norfolk, whose
central streets still follow the Medieval pattern. Norwich Cathedral
is one of England’s loveliest, while the Castle houses an
art gallery, museum and local history exhibitions. Norwich’s
open-air market is one of the biggest in the country.
Suffolk, to the south, is a quiet, typically ‘English’
countryside. The main town is Ipswich, and the
coast is lined with small resorts like Aldeburgh
(with its annual arts festival) and Southwold. |
