Hoveton Riverside Park

The Broads around Wroxham are proper water country, and Hoveton Riverside Park gives you a genuine feel for the landscape without needing a boat. It's a straightforward nature reserve where you walk along the riverbank, spot water birds, and breathe in that particular Norfolk air - reedy, damp, alive. The Bure River winds through here, and if you time it right, you'll see herons stalking the shallows and grebes diving for fish.

This is one for walkers and birdwatchers more than anything else. If your kids are the type who'll actually stop to look at dragonflies rather than demand ice cream after five minutes, they'll get something from it. Families staying at Norfolk Broads Haven - just a short walk away - often use it as an easy morning stroll before heading out on the water elsewhere.

Allow an hour, maybe ninety minutes if you're genuinely keen on birds. The paths are flat and accessible, which matters when you're on a caravan holiday and haven't walked properly in weeks. Go early for the best wildlife spotting; weekday mornings beat weekends hands down when the Broads get busier.

It's free and unfussy - no visitor centre, no café, just you and the wetland. Not the most dramatic reserve in Norfolk, but honest work if you want to understand what makes the Broads special beyond the boating chaos of Wroxham itself.