Packed with exciting shops, restaurants and tea rooms, the bustling market town of Holt is the perfect place to browse, relax and stock up on local produce. The name Holt is thought to come from the Saxon word meaning “woodland,” and there are still many wooded areas surrounding the town today, including beautiful Holt Country Park. Holt has an attractive centre, with lots of small lanes and yards to discover. These are home to charity and second-hand shops, as well as outlets selling beautifully crafted pottery, furniture and other items. There are several art galleries, as well as boutiques, bookshops and antiques’ …

Victorian and Edwardian architect George John Skipper (1856-1948) was responsible for many of the buildings in Norwich city centre. Famously described by Sir John Betjeman as “to Norwich rather what Gaudi was to Barcelona,” he was born in Dereham and educated in Norwich. Skipper considered architecture to be an art, often employing decorative artists and enjoying using great detail. He liked to emphasise corners where façades met and place turrets on entrance bays. One of his best-known creations in Norwich was Royal Arcade, linking Gentleman’s Walk with Castle Street to provide the elegant Art Nouveau-inspired shopping area which still exists …

Take a stroll down Magdalen Street to enjoy a taste of the area dubbed the city’s most multicultural road. Situated in a quarter sometimes known as Norwich-over-the-Water, beyond Tombland and over Fye Bridge, this part of the city was originally call Fybriggate. It is thought that this was where Norwich originally grew as a settlement before spreading across the water towards the Cathedral Quarter. Today, Magdalen Street retains a sense of history, with its varied architecture, but is also very much the essence of what Norwich is proud to be becoming today, a much more diverse city. Wander down Magdalen …

  A wealth of history, a lively arts scene, fantastic food and drink, and superb shopping – Norwich is a city that has it all. Set in the heart of tranquil East Anglia, surrounded by beautiful countryside and not far from the spectacular coast, it is a vibrant hub with much to offer visitors to the area, as well as those living in the city. Norwich grew from a small Anglo-Saxon settlement into a bustling centre for trade and an inland port – and evidence of its long history can still be seen today in its cobbled streets and fascinating architecture. But the …

This colourful quarter of Norwich sits right at the heart of the busy city, overlooked from one direction by City Hall and from the other by imposing Norwich Castle. The market, with its vibrant stalls, provides a focal point, with shopping streets and lanes – several of which are pedestrianised – fanning off in all directions. Gentleman’s Walk runs along the bottom and is a popular place for buskers, living statues and other street acts to perform. Many major high street names can be found in this quarter, including clothing, stationery and mobile phone outlets. Independent department store Jarrold is also here, standing …

The Forum Designed by Hopkins Architects, the Forum was built as a millennium project on the site of the previous Norwich Library, which burned down in 1994. Completed in 2001, it is home to the Norfolk and Norwich Millennium Library, the local Tourist Information Centre, the BBC East offices and studios, and a café and restaurant. The Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts Designed between 1974 and 1976, the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts was the first of architect Norman Foster’s major public buildings. The innovative building is formed around a steel framework, with individual aluminium and glass panels. It houses the famous Robert …

Winding their way through the centre of the city are the Norwich Lanes. Mostly pedestrianised and including some narrow alleyways, these enticing streets have an abundance of history and charm. Stroll down Bridewell Alley, Lower Gate Lane or Bedford Street to take in the array of exquisite character properties and architectural styles – or walk along St Giles or London Street to see some of the impressive historic buildings, where the great and good of the city once lived and worked. Today the Norwich Lanes are home to a plethora of interesting and unusual businesses. Those meandering through the pretty streets will …

Before the Romans invaded in 43AD, Norfolk was the land of the Iceni, whose most famous leader was Boudicca. Following her defeat, the Romans inhabited the area for more than 300 years, with their local capital, Venta Icenorum, just outside the present day city. A new Anglo-Saxon town with a number of settlements then grew up on the River Wensum – one of these was “Norwic.” After a Viking invasion there was a period where the Danes and Saxons fought and alternately ruled the area before settling down together and creating a large prosperous town. The arrival of the Normans from France in 1066 …

A wealth of history, a lively arts scene, fantastic food and drink, and superb shopping – Norwich is a city that has it all. Set in the heart of tranquil East Anglia, surrounded by beautiful countryside and not far from the spectacular coast, it is a vibrant hub with much to offer visitors to the area, as well as those living in the city. Norwich grew from a small Anglo-Saxon settlement into a bustling centre for trade and an inland port – and evidence of its long history can still be seen today in its cobbled streets and fascinating architecture. But the …