This new second edition of Suffolk, part of Bradt's distinctive Slow
series of regional UK guides, remains the only full-blown standalone
guide to this gentle but beguiling county. Written by expert local
author Laurence Mitchell, this is the guide of choice for anyone wanting
to get under the skin of the region and discover what makes it tick.
This new edition offers a very personal view of the county, providing
up-to-date information on the best places to visit, stay and eat,
covering not just popular sights but focusing also on those places
beyond the usual tourist trail. Suffolk's popularity as a destination is
not waning, and events such as the Latitude festival in July or the
Aldeburgh Music Festival at Britten's Snape Maltings, not to mention the
use of the RSPB's Minsmere Reserve as a base for BBC's Springwatch, are
all helping to keep the county's profile raised. Southwold, Aldeburgh,
Orford, Walberswick and Dunwich are all covered, as is the great variety
of landscapes, from undulating farmland and sandy heaths to extensive
forests such as Rendlesham and Thetford in the Brecks, important nature
reserves and the soft, dreamy coastal landscapes of river estuaries,
remote marshes, reed-beds, beaches, shingle banks, sand spits and dunes.
Also included are Constable Country and the Stour valley, Bury St
Edmunds, Framlingham, Bungay, Beccles and Halesworth, plus information
on Suffolk's wealth of medieval churches and its Anglo-Saxon heritage,
notably the royal ceremonial burial site at Sutton Hoo and the
reconstructed Anglo-Saxon village at West Stow. Bradt's Suffolk makes a
virtue of being selective and pointing the reader to the cream of the
area. It is organised into locales to encourage 'stay put' tourism, with
the opportunity to explore each locale thoroughly. There are also plenty
of options for car-free travel: walking, cycling, river boats and local
buses and trains. Written in an entertaining style, and offering a
personal narrative, authoritative information and interesting anecdotes,
Bradt's Suffolk is the ideal companion with which to discover this
charming corner of England.
