A British beach enthusiast has highlighted an overlooked but excellent coastal gem that is well worth a visit.
Given how often June is a bit of a washout in the UK, the glorious heat we've been treated to over the past week should really be taken advantage of.
With the weather warm the staycation - which became the norm during the pandemic - can be just as sunny and fun-filled as going international - not to mention less stressful and much cheaper.
TikTok creator and travel enthusiast @lotteboo3 has offered her suggested for an “underrated” beach holiday you may want to consider if looking to fill up some annual-leave time with some UK based fun.
If you have exhausted Bournemouth, Torquay, Brighton and Blackpool - or you simply want somewhere with smaller crowds - then Southwold in Suffolk is the place to go.
This “classic seaside town” is home to two beaches, Southwold Pier Beach to the north and Southwold Denes Beach to the south.
There are cute, multi-coloured beach huts lined along them, providing little pops of butter yellows, whites and blues as they run along the sand. The small town is almost as remote as an island, with just one road in and out.
During her visit the TikTok creator snapped a video of an “award-winning bakery”, filled with sausage rolls, gingerbread men, croissants and pastries galore.
She showed viewers a “cute lighthouse” - a great backdrop for holiday photographs - and a gorgeous pier where holidaymakers can add their own plaques.
In fact, the Southwold Pier official website includes a Pier Plaque Creator, where visitors can personalise their own sign.
Staycationers can also spend their days wandering around the picture-perfect streets brimming with colourful houses, browsing independent shops or just enjoying an ice cream.
While it officially has just over 1,000 residents, it's significantly larger pound-for-pound cultural impact is in part due to the many visitors it attracts, and wealthy second home owners.
Roughly 60% of the dwellings in the town are second homes, with many of the holiday lets lying empty most of the year in anticipation of their well-to-do owners' arrival.
Do you live in Southwold? How do you feel about the second homes? Email webtravel@reachplc.com
Such is the influence of absent landlords and holidaying home owners Southwold has earned the nickname “North London On Sea” - and as it's a 2.5 hour drive away from London itself, it's popular with city dwellers.
One of the intriguing aspects of the coastal settlement is that it is almost an island, as it’s surrounded by the North Sea, River Blyth and Southwold harbour.
With a beautiful sandy beach and the spectacular Adnams Brewery site in the town’s centre, there seems little reason to leave the idyllic spot, apart from to walk along the promenade.
It's therefore no surprise that the idyllic seaside village often attracts people looking to move somewhere on the coast - but it's not going to be a budget-friendly move.
Southwold has been named as the fifth most expensive coastal resorts to relocate to in the country, with house prices more than double the national average.
Average house prices in the Suffolk seaside town have been calculated at ££864,860, according to research by Suffolk Removals homepage.
