Bury St Edmunds
This historic medium-sized market town is deceptive; it may be smaller than Cambridge or Norwich, but you need to spend a couple of days here to really get under its skin and fully explore its side streets and interesting buildings. Must-see stops are the cathedral and the site of the old Priory and gardens behind it (some very interesting private homes are built into a section of the town wall here), the Angel Hotel, the Greene King museum, the newly refurbished theatre, and the excellent range of good restaurants on Angel Hill and side streets (in particular, Maison Bleue and The Grid).
Its leisure facilities are good, offering a new 8-screen cinema, all the usual High Street chains (a new shopping centre with a Debenhams is under construction), there are a number of good schools in and around the town, and you have access to some of Suffolk’s prettiest areas to the south of the town. Road links to London are good, though the much-vaunted high speed direct rail link has yet to materialise. One of Suffolk’s very best hotels is just to the south of town, forming part of an exceptional National Trust house and gardens (www.ickworthhotel.co.uk); afternoon tea is recommended! In our opinion Bury is East Anglia’s finest town. www.moreheart.info
