Great Yarmouth holiday

[Serenrose]

Has anyone been to Great Yarmouth on holiday and would you recommend? We are tentatively looking at going in June with our 4 year old. I have never been to Norfolk and would appreciate any insights. We are considering staying at either Parkdean or Hoseasons. Thanks!

[gettingalife]

Beautiful golden sandy beach. Apart from that I wouldn't recommend it. Main street is full of arcades and the like. Lots to do for children though and they wouldn't be bored. Places like Southwold and Lowestoft are much nicer.

[kwiksavenofrillsusername]

I've only stayed in GY itself for a hen night! It is a fun day out with kids, very cheesy seaside fun like amusements, rides, building sandcastles etc. But I'd rather stay in a quieter town nearby and visit for day trips.

[mrstasty]

I went every year with family in a caravan when I was younger.

It's vile. Basically a shittier Blackpool.

Nice stretch of beach, but the town itself is horrible. Puke and smashed bottles all over the streets.

[Inspirationpending]

Gorleston nearby is much nicer with a lovely beach

[VinylDetective]

It’s awful. Try Wells, Cromer or Sherringham. The Runtons are nice too.

[hellasciously]

I went every year as a kid too, loved it. Haven't been in years, people say the Haven site nearby is nice.

[Cadoo]

Caravan parks are OK. Goes let on beach much nicer. Town is horrid and seafront/arcades quite run down.

My kids enjoy the Pleasure beach. I wouldn't go for any longer than a long weekend tbh

[unicornparty]

It's really rough and run down.

[TakeMeToYourLiar]

We went in September and stayed at Haven Hopton. It's right on the beach so we sat and watched sunrise one morning. Was gorgeous

There are plenty of days out nearby such as bewilderwood

Yarmouth itself is a typical seaside town.

[Crappyfridays7]

My mum lives in Norwich so we usually go for a day with the kids but couldn’t stay longer than that. It’s a bit run down but kids enjoy it. Sherringham is my fave place to visit loads to do within driving of Norwich so handy base - although likely wouldn’t visit if it wasn’t for my mum living there.,

[peak2021]

Gorleston is better, as is anywhere a bit further south such as Hopton.

[BackforGood]

Beautiful sand in that part of the world.
Depends what you are after and what your budget is.
Cheap and cheerful seaside.
You have the beach, ice creams and maybe arcades - I'd have though most 4 yr olds would choose that over the "culture" that a large proportion of MNers would prefer.
For me, if my dc are enjoying their holiday, then we, as parents enjoy it too.

I do agree with others that Gorleston nearby is nice.

[PinkSpring]

I live nearby, it's fine for a day out with all the typical side side town attractions - I wouldn't want to holiday there though.

It's run down, quite rough as well. GY also has quite a lot of poverty, anti social behaviour and drug issues - from the seafront it looks fairly normal, but go a couple of streets in and it's a different story!

If you want to go to GY, I would stay elsewhere and visit for the day!

[Serenrose]

Thanks everyone for your advice! I will look into the other places mentioned too. Thanks again

[WorriedMillie]

We stayed at cherry tree caravan park a few years back. It’s far enough out of town, you have to drive (we only went in once, it wasn’t the nicest)
The caravan park was lovely, indoor and outdoor pools, not too noisy

The beach at Gorleston is nice, it has a splash park too that DD enjoyed

We’ve also stayed at a haven site at caister, which DD loved. It was right on the beach and there was lots for kids to do

There are some lovely places to visit further north- Cromer, Wells, Holt- we used to head out for day trips
And don’t forget the seals at Horsey

[Ormally]

Didn't know Norfolk very well at all either. Stayed last year at Winterton on Sea 15 mins drive from GY - gorgeous, beach and dunes met all we were looking for, although very quiet. The next bay along, Sea Palling, was similar but with 1 nice arcade and a bit more going on. Clippesby Hall, not far away, had a lovely camp site with options of one or 2 wooden lodges too.

[Throwaway99]

I love Great Yarmouth. Lots to do. Sea Life Centre etc. Nice beach and fair. A real bucket and spade holiday.

[Busygoingblah]

Not sure why someone has recommended lowestoft. Even less to do/ just as run down as Yarmouth.

If you’re looking for a Sandy beach, arcades and chips then Yarmouth will fit the bill. The hippodrome circus is a highlight! You’ll find nicer towns and quieter beaches further up the Norfolk coast though.

Definitely check out bewilderwood for a four year old. There’s also several zoos and the dinosaur park:

[hanner414]

Norfolk is lovely, if you have a car yarmouth is fine as other places you can go to. But I wouldn't personally want to holiday in yarmouth for a whole week with out a car. Plenty do though so it cant be that bad x

[SummerHouse]

@Ormally

Didn't know Norfolk very well at all either. Stayed last year at Winterton on Sea 15 mins drive from GY - gorgeous, beach and dunes met all we were looking for, although very quiet. The next bay along, Sea Palling, was similar but with 1 nice arcade and a bit more going on. Clippesby Hall, not far away, had a lovely camp site with options of one or 2 wooden lodges too.

Winterton is the best place on earth. I would go there. And a day trip to Yarmouth. Hippodrome circus is fab!

[bilbodog]

If you want a lovely beach but none of the crap attractions you could go to gorleston which is just south of yarmouth. It has a beautiful beach, a couple of arcades only - much nicer than Yarmouth or lowestoft.

North norfolk is nicer - beaches and less crap.

[scrivette]

Great Yarmouth is great for a day out, there are loads of things to do for a family in Norfolk.

Bewilderwood, as mentioned above, is brilliant, can also recommend hiring a boat on the Broads, Roaar Dinosaur Theme Park and Thrigby Hall for the animals.

[Throwaway99]

If you want a quieter holiday in Norfolk , Mundesley is a nice village with a great beach and very near to Cromer and Sheringham.

Not much to do in the quieter places if the weather is bad so you will need a car.

[Serenrose]

Thanks so much everyone, there are some great suggestions here for me to look at.

We normally prefer a quieter holiday, but would like some activity options available for DD if we need them, particularly if it rains! We will be driving to there, so will have a car.