Ilketshall St Andrews Church

You won't find crowds at Ilketshall St Andrews Church, and that's precisely why it's worth the short drive east from Beccles. This is proper Suffolk - a medieval church sitting quietly in the countryside, the sort of place where you can actually hear yourself think.

The church itself dates back centuries, with that solid Norfolk flint construction that speaks of real permanence. Inside, there's decent medieval detail if you're into that sort of thing - carved stone, old glass, the accumulated weight of village life across generations. It's not vast or showy, which means it feels genuine rather than curated for visitors.

Really this one's for the slow-traveller types: walkers tackling the footpath network around here, or anyone spending a few days at Green Haven Camping just down the road and wanting to poke about the quieter corners of the Broads hinterland. Families with easily bored kids might find an hour feels long, but if you've got history-minded adults or keen photographers, the light through those windows and the churchyard itself are worth lingering over.

It's free to visit, naturally - no one's manning a till out here. The real charm is the solitude. Come on a weekday morning if you can, when even the village feels like it's keeping secrets. Beccles is close enough for lunch or supplies, but the appeal of this place is that it feels miles from anywhere.