In: Norfolk Luxury Cottages

We always listen to our guests – both by reading our Customer Service Satisfaction and talking to them during their visit.  We know what our guests like about staying at Cranmer so we thought we would share our top 10 reasons why people book with us.
 

1.  Family friendly: You might think that this is obvious but we are really family-friendly. All our cottages are stylish, comfortable and spacious. Open plan living/dining areas means that families can all be together while preparing food. Everything is on one level which means no running up and down stairs and parents can easily keep an eye on the children.

Each cottage has large patio doors which open onto a terrace. From the terrace parents can enjoy a glass of wine while watching their children play in the large paddock at the back of the cottages. This paddock is completely fenced in, making it a safe environment.
 

2. Heated indoor swimming pool: The pool is designed to be perfect for children. With a water temperature of 29oC little ones can be warm both in and out of the water. We salt dose the pool rather than using harsh chemicals so it’s kind to delicate skin and beneficial to asthma sufferers. And when the weather is not so good it is a good way to amuse the kids when they cannot play outdoors.

3. Owners live on site:  Unlike many other holiday cottages, the owners Lynne and John Johnson live at Cranmer. We also have administration and maintenance cover during normal work hours on site. While we do regular weekly maintenance on the cottages, there is always the possibility that something will break or stop working and we can usually get it sorted quickly rather than having to wait for on outside contractor to get here. Lynne and John are on hand to dispense local knowledge and, if you are interested, John will give you a tour of the eco-systems they have installed at the cottage complex or even show you his collection of vintage cars!

 

4. Award winning: Cranmer holds two important awards; Visit England Gold Award and the Green Tourism Gold Award.  Both of these are testament to the quality, cleanliness and facilities available at the cottages. We all work hard to gain and maintain these standards and guests can be confident that their holiday will be top notch.

 

5.  Booking direct:  following comments from guests we now have an efficient online booking system. Guest can check availability and pricing on our website in real time at any time of the day or night. Perfect for booking last minute deals.

 

6.  Secure payments: our new booking system means that we no longer have access to your credit or debit card details. All payments are made online using a secure SagePay system, giving guests the reassurance that their payments are promptly made, securing their holiday and their details are secure.

 

7.  Local knowledge: Lynne, John and their daughter Emily have lived in North Norfolk for sixteen years and John knows Norfolk from his childhood. They are regular sailors and know a great deal about North Norfolk and what it has to offer visitors. If you want recommendations for restaurants or nearby amenities for children, they have test driven most of them. The whole team has an excellent knowledge of the best places to visit and the best food to buy or eat.

 

8.  Facilities: As well as our heated indoor swimming pool, Lynne has worked to make Cranmer very family friendly. The large fenced paddock area at the back of all the cottages (except Coot) is perfect for children to play safely, watch nature on their doorsteps and make friends. There are swings and a Wendy House and summer cricket matches are often organised by guests. We also have 2 all-weather tennis courts and a well-equipped Games Room for those wet days where families can play table tennis, pool or darts. There are books for children and the grown-up and lots of information about local attractions. We also have a lockable bike store.

 

9.  Location: Cranmer offers the best of countryside and coast. Close to the North Norfolk heritage coast and Holkham, it’s only 3 hours from London (on a good day!).The beaches are spectacular, there is shopping in Burnham Market and Holt and if you crave some city life, Norwich is only an hour away. There’s lots of healthy outdoor things to do with the children.

 

10. Green Tourism: While this might not be the most important thing you think about it when you are booking your holiday, we believe that it is important that our business is sustainable and eco-friendly. Our biomass boiler, solar panels and wind turbine mean that we are energy efficient. So it’s going on in the background during your stay, it’s good for the environment and it’s sustainable.

 

 

 
With Easter just a few weeks away, we are feeling rather excited that spring has arrived. We are certainly enjoying the daffodils that are scattered around the countryside, they glow like little rays of sunshine that offer promise that warmer weather and lighter evenings are on their way.

North Norfolk is definitely gearing up for the holiday season and with the Easter Holidays just around the corner we look forward to welcoming new and returning visitors to the area.
If you are still looking for a break over the Easter weekend, then look no further! Our family friendly cottages are situated in the tranquil countryside, but are only a short drive away from the coast. There are lots of Easter themed activities taking place in the area with plenty of other things to enjoy as a family during your stay too. We are even offering a 10% discount and a personalised, handmade chocolate Easter Egg if you book your stay over the Easter weekend… We promise not to nibble on the chocolate before you arrive, even though it is practically impossible to resist!
Below we’ve put together some suggested family friendly things to do over the Easter holidays and for some more ideas on what you can do during your stay, read our A to Z guide of things to do in Norfolk too.
Lamb Feeding
Cuddle and bottle feed a baby lamb at the Stow Bardolph Rare Breeds Farm. There is also the chance to hold fluffy Easter chicks and make friends with lots of farm animals including horses, pigs and rabbits.
Easter Trail
Take a special Easter Trail at one of the following locations and you may even be in with a chance of winning an Easter Egg!
You may even want to set up your own Easter Egg hunt within the grounds of our cottages.
Crabbing
Grab yourself a line, bucket and some bait (crabs seem to love bacon!) and see how many crabs you can catch from Well’s Harbour. 
Geocaching

If you’ve not heard of Geocaching, it’s a worldwide, real life treasure hunting game. All you need to play is a GPS device i.e. a smart phone. Geocache has it’s own app which is available to download and from there you can search for caches near to you which you can then track down. Other than purchasing the app, it is free to do and gives families the opportunity to spend time together enjoying the great outdoors. For full details visit http://www.geocaching.com/

Fancy treating your mum this mother’s day? How about booking a last minute weekend break in one of our luxury cottages where she can be surrounded by her family and spoilt rotten. 
There’s no better way to say thanks than to give her a bit of time to relax and unwind on the North Norfolk coast and treat her to a scrumptious mother’s day lunch at one of these popular venues.
North Creake
If you’re a fan of a traditional pub atmosphere and good food then look no further than the Jolly Farmers. The menu offers a great variety of seasonal and locally sourced meals ranging from traditional pub grub to impressive daily specials.
Holkham
The Victoria is a short stroll from the famous and very beautiful Holkham Beach. It’s a very welcoming place to stop and indulge in a delicious plate of food after an exhilarating walk on the beach. Serving fresh, local and seasonal is paramount for the chefs at the Victoria; you can enjoy beef and venison straight from the Holkham estate as well as delicious fresh fish that’s caught on the North Norfolk coast. Food is served from 8am so you can even pop in for a hearty breakfast if you don’t fancy cooking breakfast in your cottage.
Brancaster
The White Horse offers spectacular views over the Norfolk Coastal path and marsh making it a beautiful place to dine. The chefs pride themselves on cooking up fresh local produce including an abundance of locally caught fish and seafood, which is delivered by the local village fishermen. You can’t get fish any fresher than straight off the boat!
Thornham
The Orange Tree is a contemporary styled pub situated in the beautiful village of Thornham. It has won many awards including the Dining Pub of the year for two consecutive years. Their award winning food is innovative and the executive chef, Philip Milner is well known for his seafood dishes including wild seabass and razor clams. There are a variety of dishes that will suit most tastes, ranging from the pub classics to contemporary cuisine.
Titchwell, Nr Brancaster
Titchwell Manor was the winner of the EDP best restaurant of the year 2013 and we can fully understand why. The two restaurants on site offer a truly gastronomic experience. The Eating Rooms offers a more informal and relaxed atmosphere where you can enjoy a selection of dishes from their large brasserie menu or book a table at the conservatory where you can savour a 7 course evening meal. On Sundays both menus combine plus there’s the opportunity to tuck into a traditional Sunday roast too. Delicious!
It won’t be long until the schools break up for the summer meaning it gets busier than ever in North Norfolk and we are hoping that the warm, sunny weather we are currently experiencing is set to stay for the holiday season.
We always boast about how lucky we are to be in such a beautiful part of the UK, North Norfolk really is a unique place to live and seems to have something for everyone to enjoy. Our unspoilt, golden beaches are a great retreat on hot sunny days. There’s nothing better than packing up a hearty picnic full of delicious local produce and spending the day with the family, swimming in the sea, building sandcastles, flying kites and exploring the coastline. If sand and sea isn’t your thing, then we have some great open parks to also stroll around and picnic at.  There are also plenty of quaint market towns and villages to visit, all of which are full of fabulous shops and places to eat too.
On top of all of this, there are plenty of attractions to visit from famous stately homes such as Sandringham and Holkham Hall, to unspoilt nature reserves where you can learn about the fantastic wildlife that makes North Norfolk its home in the summer. There are also several places to take the children for a packed day of entertainment and fun too. Our fantastic new interactive map on our website highlights some of the great places to visit in the area.
We can’t also forget all of the exciting events taking place over the next few weeks, from carnivals and craft fairs to children’s activity weeks. You really are spoilt for choice. The most stressful part of your holiday this year will be deciding on what to do first!
JULY

11th – 27th
Fakenham Arts Biennial
21st – 27th
Holt Festival
Holt
www.holtfestival.org
27th
The Anglian Triathlon
Cromer
www.theanglian.co.uk
27th – 28th
Holkham Country Fair
Holkham Hall
www.holkhamcountryfair.com
27th – 28th
Worstead Festival
Worstead
www.worsteadfestival.org
26th July – 4thAug
Wells Carnival
Wells-next-the-sea
www.wellscarnival.co.uk
27th July – 1stSeptember
Curious Crocklebog Capers
BeWILDerwood
www.bewilderwood.co.uk/plan-your-visit/events/curious-crocklebog-capers-2013
31st
Sandringham Flower Show
Sandringham
www.sandringhamflowershow.org.uk
AUGUST
3rd
Butterfly Walk & Talk
Sculthorpe Moor
www.hawkandowl.org/events/butterfly-walk-and-talk
3rd – 11th
Sheringham Carnival
Sheringham
www.sheringhamcarnival.com
9th
Beach Discovery Day
Holkham Hall
www.holkham.co.uk/html/beach_discovery_days.html
10th – 11th
Charity Lego Weekend to raise funds for the East Anglian Air Ambulance
Holt Hall
www.holthall.norfolkedunet.gov.uk/events.html
10th – 18th
Bug Week at the Dinosaur Adventure Park
Lenwade, Norwich
www.dinosauradventure.co.uk/general-information/events.php
17th
Burnham Market Craft Fair
Burnham Market
www.burnhammarket.co.uk/event/burnham-market-craft-fair
24th
Jools Holland & His Rhythm & Blues Orchestra
Holkham Hall
www.holkham.co.uk/html/concerts_park_2013.html
24th
Fakenham Farmers Market
Fakenham
www.fakenhamfarmersmarket.co.uk
31st August – 1stSeptember
North Norfolk Food & Drink Festival
Holkham Hall
www.northnorfolkfoodfestival.co.uk/

The weather is set to be warm and sunny this weekend, which gives us all the perfect opportunity to spark up the barbeque, enjoy the great outdoors and tuck in to some tasty food with friends and family.
Keith from Manor Cottage Catering is one of our preferred suppliers here Cranmer Cottages and has kindly supplied us with his favourite burger recipe plus his secret pickle recipe which is the perfect accompaniment with a BBQ burger.
So why not treat yourself to some good local produce this weekend and have a go at making these delicious burgers with their tasty pickle.
Soft herb and English onion pickle
150ml Good olive oil
50ml Red wine vinegar
100g Tomato ketchup
1tsp Worcester sauce
1tsp Tabasco sauce
4 English onions, very finely diced
50g Chervil, finely chopped
50g Chives, sliced very finely
25g Tarragon leaves picked and chopped
2tsp Dijon mustard
Prepare all the ingredients separately and then mix well in a bowl.
Store in an air tight container and this recipe will keep for at least one month in the fridge.
I use this pickle as an accompaniment to a slow braised, salt beef sandwich or barbeque beef burgers. It also works really well through a leaf salad to give an added boost of flavour and texture.
Beef burgers
3kg Good steak mince. (I use Sandringham Estate Red Poll. Most decent local butchers will stock Red Poll but there is plenty of other good quality beef available. Locally, Walsingham Farm Shops also stock a very good quality beef too)
4 English onions, finely diced
50g Fresh thyme, dried can be used but use half of the amount
2tbs Colman’s English mustard powder
2tbs Smoked paprika
Sea salt and black pepper
Fry your onions, slowly, in very little oil, without colour. Once they start to turn translucent, add your paprika (at this point you could use a good quality barbeque powder to give your burgers a real smoky flavour). Cook your onions for another minute so that they take on the paprika and it starts to release its aroma. Now leave to cool.
Chop your thyme. If you have very fresh, young thyme, you can chop the whole herb, including the stork, as long as you do it very finely. You can always pick any odd bigger pieces out, if needed, before adding it to your mince. Another trick, which works better with older thyme, is to freeze it. Once frozen, remove it from the freezer and hold it between your palms above a plate or board. Now roll it between your palms and the leaves should all fall off, ready for you to chop.
Once you have prepared these ingredients and your onions are cool, add all of the ingredients together in a bowl and mix well with plenty of seasoning. This is best done in an electric mixer but by hand is fine. I never use breadcrumbs or eggs to bind. You don’t need them. As long as you mix the mince and press your burgers well, they will hold together. Do not over mix as this will make your burgers tough. You can always cook a little bit off at this point to check for seasoning.
Finally shape into 200g burgers. You can do this several ways. Weigh them all first so you can shape them all together. I use a pastry cutter. Keep them nice and flat so you don’t get meatballs when you cook them.
Now leave them to rest in a fridge until you are ready to stick them on the BBQ.
Cook and enjoy!