48 hours on The Suffolk Coast for History Buffs!

Arrive in Dunwich on Friday evening and check in at The Ship; once a smugglers haunt, this 16th century coaching in is perfectly located for exploring the village. It's hard to believe that Dunwich was once the capital of East Anglia - a port of such size and importance, second only to London. Take a walk to the abbey ruins and head to the heath and beach for an evening walk before finding a table in front of the fire in the hotel's restaurant.

Enjoy a breakfast of grilled Lowestoft kippers or hop in the car and park up in Southwold; walking out to sea along the historic pier and enjoying breakfast in the restaurant or at the nearby Boating Lake. 

Walk through the town, stopping to look at the coastal houses; from traditional fisherman's cottages grand Edwardian villas before visiting the Electric Picture Palace; a 70 seat cinema which captures the experience of cinema-going in the early 20th century.

Stay in the town and head to Southwold Railway Steamworks; a small site dedicated to the 3-foot gauge Southwold Railway that connected Southwold to Halesworth from 1879 to 1929. 

Travel south along the coast to Aldeburgh; your first historical hot spot will be The Red House; where composer Benjamin Britten lived with Peter Pears, his muse and life partner, for nearly two decades until his death in 1976.

The House has retained it's classic 1950s/60s interior, with an eclectic range of books, art, and furniture. You can explore the house, Britten’s Composition Studio and Library and enjoy exhibitions, recitals, discovery sessions, study days and come and sing events that take place across the year. 

Afterwards, make your way to the beach visiting Aldeburgh's historic Martello Tower; These squat, 19th Century fortifications formed a defensive line along our coast to keep the invading Napoleonic armies at bay.

For dinner book a table at The Cross Keys; situated in the heart of the town, the Adnams inn is a grade II listed building which despite recently being refurbished, maintains all of its characterful features. You can also book a room here, with 3 characterful ensuite bedrooms to choose from.

Make the short drive to Thorpeness to wander round the meare and gaze up at the iconic House in the Clouds, before driving down the coast to Woodbridge. Here you can visit the Tide Mill which has stood on the banks of the River Deben for over 800 years and is now one of only two tide mills in the country still producing stoneground wholemeal flour. 

Next, travel on to Bawsdey to Bawdsey Radar; the first operational radar station in the world where radar was developed that helped win the Battle of Britain or spend a few hours at National Trust Sutton Hoo; where one of the the greatest archaeological discoveries of all time was uncovered uncovered - the Great Ship Burial that's thought to be the final resting place of an Anglo-Saxon king.

Before you head home, make one more stop at The Suffolk Punch Trust to get up close to Suffolk's magnificent Suffolk Punch Horse and explore The Hollesley Bay Colony Stud, the world’s oldest and largest Suffolk Punch stud farm.

Long Shop Museum - Located at the heart of the original Richard Garrett and Sons Town Works in Leiston, The Long Shop museum tells an inspiring story of enterprise and endeavor through its stunning collections, hands-on displays and the remarkable family behind the factory.

Landguard Fort - Landguard Fort in Felixstowe has played a key strategic part in the defence of the British Isles since the 1500s. It is also the site of the last opposed seaborne invasion of England in 1667, and the first land battle of the Royal Marines.

Felixstowe Museum - Bringing alive the military and social history of this seaside town with fourteen different galleries and collections including mammoth tusks, Roman pottery, Medieval coins and cannon balls and you can learn about the ancient inhabitants of this region.

East Anglia Transport Museum - The only museum in East Anglia where you can ride on working trams, trolley buses and narrow gauge railway! Explore the exhibition halls, period street scenes and 'Tar, Sweat and Steam building'. 

Angels & Pinnacles - Spend a day or so visiting Suffolk's magnificent medieval churches including Blythburgh, the ‘Cathedral of the Marshes’ and Orford St Bartholomew – the church that Benjamin Britten loved - with its powerful sculpture by Lilian Yauner marking the 50th anniversary of the Aldeburgh Festival. 

Ipswich Museums -  three historical venues in Ipswich; Ipswich Museum - a fascinating Victorian museum; Christchurch Mansion - a magnificent Tudor building; and Ipswich Art Gallery - a unique contemporary gallery. 

Suffolk Museums - There are more than 50 museums in Suffolk. Each one is unique, and they are all packed with fascinating stories and objects, housed in castles and cottages; in moot halls and on wartime airfields; in a Victorian engineering works and at a railway station. 

For a full list of historical attractions on The Suffolk Coast, click here!