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★★★★☆

“Norfolk Broads August Short Break”

written by McCainzz469 on 31/08/2015

This was our first experience of boating on the Norfolk Broads. We did not need our folding bike. We collected our boat from Richardsons Boatyard, Stalham for a Monday afternoon to Friday morning break. I was impressed by the Richardsons' Reception staff who were pleasant and professional; I was also given a Richardsons Welcome Aboard and Broads Map that compared very favourably with the commercial ones that we had bought previously. It was a pity they were not sent to us a week beforehand.
The boat was sound and serviceable; its interior was cleaned to a high standard but the exterior was grubby and the painters knotted. We were given an excellent boat handling briefing but I was glad of my previous boat handling experience - a novice may find it challenging! There was also a comprehensive boat's Captain's Manual to refer to - however it did not highlight the fact that our boat was two inch too high to go under Potter Higham Bridge so we were unable to visit Hickling Broad as planned. Luckily, somehow, we picked up the fact that Richardsons' boats may moor up at other boat-hire yards - this is a great bonus as the public moorings are often fully occupied by mid afternoon. Alternatively, there needs more emphasis on non-staithe (quayside) mooring during the briefing.
We were undeterred by a wet first day but the Broads are far more attractive. We were delighted to see the grebes,herons, terns but did not spot any otters. Recommend booking a table in advance if you intend to eat ashore.
We spent one night at a boatyard at Wroxham and paid £5 (reasonable fee) for night on a private staithe at Stokesby
The return of the boat was handled very efficiently with the minimum fuss or bother.
We were all delighted with our short break on the northern Norfolk Broads and recommend others to try it too. The big debate is: should we try the southern broads or keep on returning to Richardsons on the Norfolk ones? I rate this holiday four and half stars and not four as shown.



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