WEEKEND IN… HUNSTANTON

Don’t tell Blackpool, but the town that lays claim to the title of Britain’s first purpose-built seaside resort of the railway era is Hunstanton in northwest Norfolk. Sadly, the last train chugged out of Hunstanton station in 1969 and since the pier blew away in a storm in 1978 most of the Victorian-era attractions are, sadly, no more. However, the town’s natural assets – stripy red and white cliffs and an easy-access, west-facing beach – means that ‘Sunny Hunny’ is still a big draw. Thousands flock to the sands, amusement arcades and fun fair; while kite-surfers whizz over the windy waves of The Wash.

If such thrills are not your cup of tea, you will be delighted to learn that the genteel, medieval village of Old Hunstanton, home for centuries to the aristocratic Le Strange family