Suffolk celebrates growth of nature-friendly tourism

Hit nature TV series - including hit David Attenborough show Wild Isles - may be among the factors which are fuelling the trend.

A ban on overseas travel during the 2020-21 pandemic enabled people to rediscover the UK's great beauty spots - including the Suffolk and Norfolk coastline and other parts of the counties where nature can still be found in abundance.

The region's tourism bosses say eco-conscious breaks are becoming increasingly popular.

"Eco-tourism and sustainable, responsible tourism is a growing trend and we can see from our research that visitor economy businesses are keen to take advantage of this," explained Pete Waters, executive director of Visit East of England.

The younger generation is using pester-power to persuade parents not to travel by air because of environmental concerns, he added.

"We might see more staycations from eco-conscious families who will want to holiday as sustainably as they can."

The counties boast a number of natural assets - including a National Park, three Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and nature reserves and parkland run by the National Trust and Wildlife Trusts - which provide a draw for holidaymakers in search of a peaceful getaway.

During the pandemic, tourism bosses successfully promoted Suffolk and Norfolk as ‘Unexplored England’ - highlighting the benefits of mindfulness and a slower pace of life.

Later this year, Visit East of England will follow this up with a new Placemaking brand - with a focus on sustainability, inclusivity and accessibility. Protecting and conserving the environment will be a central theme.

"Businesses are picking up on that and providing more sustainable and eco-conscious packages from things like EV Recharging points to baggage transfers that encourage more cyclists," said Mr Waters.

Many farmers are also looking to diversify by providing camping and glamping opportunities alongside their traditional businesses and that will grow the number of eco-tourists.

A number of eco-conscious holiday enterprises have already sprung up in East Anglia - and they see plenty of scope for growth in the sector.

They have been buoyed by the effects of nature shows such as Wild Isles and its focus on the rich - but threatened -wildlife to be found on our doorsteps.

Wild East - an organisation seeking to "wild up" the two intensively-farmed counties through a voluntary coalition of nature-friendly farmers, landowners, householders and businesses - is keen to see the rise of tourism businesses which are in tune with nature.

It sees this as one way of helping to create a mosaic of new nature wildernesses which will benefit wildlife while at the same time demonstrating that those sticking to an eco-conscious code can thrive.

Lord Somerleyton - owner of the Somerleyton Estate in north Suffolk and one of the founders of Wild East alongside Argus Hardy of Little Glemham, near Saxmundham - has been a pioneer of eco-friendly tourism in the region.

He has sought to create a wildlife oasis around his Fritton Lake holiday cabins business - and says since Covid demand for more eco-friendly holiday destinations has grown.

"We pursued eco-tourism because as a farmer and co-founder of WildEast I am exercised by our collective debt to nature – so returning some land to nature in our case was the obvious first step," he explained.

"I am fortunate that some of the poorest land on our farm is former heathland – much like the AONB at Dunwich - Suffolk Sandlings – is around Fritton Lake where we already have a mature tourism business," he said.

They were developing an eco food and tourism element to a "map of dreams" - based on one devised by an American charity - so that eco-conscious visitors could easily navigate where to go, he said.

"The demand is there and increasing all the time," he added.

Others who also believe that eco-tourism is the future are business partners Jonathan Lewis-Phillips and Allen Trivett.

They have launched Castle Wild Camp, a rewilding project at Baconsthorpe near Holt in north Norfolk which is transforming 45 acres of arable land into a wildlife haven in a bid to halt dramatic declines in species. They have leased the land from Thomas and Amelia Courtauld.

In spring 2023, five large arable fields were ploughed for the last time and with the support of Natural England will be allowed to return to "nature-packed wildflower meadows, woodland, open glades and scrub",  explained Mr Lewis-Phillips.

The site offers peaceful and family-friendly camping in private and secluded glades, surrounded by wildflowers and birdsong.

Five farmland ponds have also been restored with the help of the Norfolk Ponds Project, and a permissive footpath leads to a castle, a local pub and the first beaver reintroduction project in North Norfolk pioneered by Norfolk Rivers Trust.

“Wild Isles brilliantly showcased the amazing wildlife we have in the UK and also the incredibly intricate connections between species that are completely reliant on each other," said Mr Lewis-Phillips.

Family-run eco-campsite Birds and Bees at Rendham Hall, near Framlingham, was created by farmers James and Emma Strachan.

In 2016, James realised that the family's low-intensity dairy operation with around 100 cows was no longer sustainable.

The family reluctantly decided to sell the cows and see what else could be done with the farm to cover the overheads while remaining sustainable.

They opened their 16 to 17-pitch campsite in the summer of 2017 based on 10 of the farm's 200 acres and pretty soon were fully booked.

No cars are allowed on the meadow and are instead parked in a sunken car park so they’re "out of sight and out of mind". 

Solar panels heat the water and provide electricity for the campsite and farm. They have also installed compostable long drop loos in the meadows.

They have also taken on a small flock of grazing sheep to improve soil health. They grow bird and nectar plots and a wide variety of flowering plants.

In North Walsham, farmers Luke and Louise Paterson have created Dilham Hall Retreats with the aim of capturing visitors seeking an outdoor holiday with a chance to "reconnect".

"While the demand for eco tourism on a family farm is finite, we wanted to show people how beautiful the farm is in a fitting sympathetic way," explained Luke Paterson.

The business aims to be carbon negative, with a focus on conservation and sustainability.

The farm's maize and rye crops supply a local anaerobic digestion (AD) plant - producing enough green energy to power 250 homes a year. The crops are fed with organic manure.

The venture is busy all year round, they said - even in the winter months when the holiday pods are used by people wanting to get away in nature and enjoy a hot tub under the stars surrounded by wildlife.