The Ellingham Hall crest: a bird rising from a crown
Ellingham Hall EstateNorfolk · on the edge of the Broads

A private estate on the edge of the Broads National Park

An estate to disappear into

Come and stay on 200 acres of woodland, lakes and parkland where the Waveney Valley meets the Broads National Park, in houses that sleep up to eight, ten and fourteen. Hot tubs under some of England's darkest skies, a stocked fishing lake, walks that start at the door, and your dogs as welcome as you are. No reception desk, no queue at breakfast: book with us directly and the estate is yours to roam.

Enquire about a stay See the houses
Houses sleeping up to 8, 10 and 14 Dogs welcome Hot tubs at every house Fishing on the estate lake
The brick gate piers and iron gates at the entrance to the Ellingham Hall Estate, with the drive running into the trees
The estate lake fringed with reeds, parkland trees on the far bank
A tree-lined lane on the Ellingham Hall Estate in dappled light

Stay

The houses

Each house stands in its own gardens with the run of the whole estate: the woodland walks, the orchards, the rolling parkland and the big stocked fishing lake. Take one for a family gathering, or all three together and sleep thirty.

Manor Farmhouse at Ellingham: a long cream farmhouse with a picnic bench on its lawn

Manor Farmhouse

The big house of the three: seven bedrooms round a farmhouse kitchen with an AGA.

Sleeps 147 bedrooms5.5 bathroomsHot tubDog friendly

Made for whole families and old friends: twelve beds across seven flexible bedrooms, several sitting rooms to scatter into, and a kitchen that seats everyone. Two ground-floor bedrooms and an accessible shower room mean grandparents come too. Self check-in by smart lock, parking for a convoy, and home-cooked meals can be arranged for arrival nights.

Rated 4.98 from 65 reviews on Airbnb, where it sits in the top five per cent of homes.

Enquire Guest favourite Reviews and calendar on Airbnb
Old Hall Farmhouse: a white Norfolk farmhouse on its gravel sweep, hot tub in the garden

Old Hall Farmhouse

A dog-friendly retreat hidden in the estate, full of character and warmth.

Sleeps 105 bedrooms3.5 bathroomsLog burnerHot tubDog friendly

Made for slow breakfasts, muddy dog walks, evenings by the fire and lazy lunches that drift into dinner. Five bedrooms that set up as super-king doubles or twins, a hot tub beneath dark countryside skies, and fishing on the estate lake a few minutes' walk away.

Rated 5.0 from 23 reviews on Airbnb, in the top ten per cent of homes.

Enquire 5.0 on Airbnb Reviews and calendar on Airbnb
The Granary: a red-brick barn conversion on the Ellingham Hall Estate

The Granary

The snug one: three bedrooms, a garden room and a private enclosed garden.

Sleeps 6–83 bedrooms2.5 bathroomsHot tubDog friendly

Newly done through, with a garden room looking over its own enclosed garden, a separate sitting room with a sofa bed for the overflow, and three bedrooms upstairs that set up as super-kings or twins. The same run of the estate, the same lake, on a gentler scale.

Rated 4.86 from 14 reviews on Airbnb: a guest favourite.

Enquire Guest favourite Reviews and calendar on Airbnb

Roam

The run of the place

Guests have the estate, not just the house. Many arrive with plans for the coast and the Broads and find they barely leave.

The fishing lake

A large, well-stocked lake on the estate, yours to fish during your stay. Rods by the water at dawn, coffee on the bank.

Woodland walks

Paths through estate woods and along field edges, straight from your door: an hour before breakfast or an afternoon of it.

Parkland and orchards

Rolling parkland with mature trees, and orchards to wander through: blossom in spring, fruit in autumn.

Dogs, properly welcome

Not tolerated: welcome. Gardens, walks and water for them, towels and warm fires afterwards.

Hot tubs outdoors

Every house has one, set for the evening sky rather than the bathroom ceiling.

Suppers arranged

Home-cooked meals can be arranged, so the first night looks after itself.

The Granary's oak door framed by climbing roses, flanked by two stone dog statues
Canada geese and goslings on the estate lake
Sunny parkland with a hammock slung under a tree in the gardens
A cock pheasant on the snow-covered flint and brick wall by the estate lake, the iron gate beside it
The lake in snow, a pheasant on the wall

After dark

Some of the darkest skies in England

The Waveney Valley keeps its nights. Step into the hot tub as the light goes, and watch the stars arrive over the parkland: no street lamps, no glow on the horizon, nothing between you and the sky. This is what guests write about afterwards.

Morning mist lying low over the parkland, the great trees in silhouette against a pale sky
First light through the mist on the park
The great cedar on the Ellingham parkland at a frosted dawn, low sun behind its branches
The great cedar on the parkland, a frosted dawn

The heart of it

Ellingham Hall

The drive in brings you past Ellingham Hall itself, the house at the centre of the estate and the Smith family's home for some three hundred years. The houses you stay in were its working buildings and farmhouses, the parkland was laid out for it and the lake belongs to its landscape. It is a working family estate, and the family is usually about.

Vaughan Smith, whose family home this is, spent thirty years as a war cameraman in more than fifty countries and founded London's Frontline Club in memory of colleagues who did not come back. From December 2010 the Hall was Julian Assange's bail address for a year and more, with the world's press at the gate. A house tradition explains your booking: for four generations the eldest son has been christened Henry and known by his second name, so the Henry on your booking and the Vaughan here are the same person. Ask when you book and the family team will point you at the best walk, the right pub and the fish that always gets away.

More of that story: vaughansmith.com, the Frontline Club and True Regard.

Ellingham Hall in architectural line drawing: a Georgian house with a hipped roof, tall chimneys and arched ground-floor windows, flanked by single-storey wings
The Hall, drawn for the estate’s cider label
The family arms in watercolour: a shield of gold and blue divided by an embattled line, a cross patonce counterchanged in each half, and above it a bird rising from a golden crown
The family arms
Julian Assange seated by the open fire in the drawing room at Ellingham Hall
Julian Assange at the Hall

Round about

When you do go out

Ellingham sits where the Waveney Valley meets the Broads National Park: the park's southern rivers a few minutes away, the coast twenty-five, and a proper market town on the doorstep.

Bungay

10 minutes

The nearest market town: butcher, bakers, bookshops, antiques and good pubs along the Waveney.

Beccles & the Broads

15 minutes

Gateway to the Broads National Park: day boats, paddleboards and riverside lunches on the park's southern rivers.

Southwold

25 minutes

Beach huts, the pier, the lighthouse and Adnams: the classic Suffolk seaside day.

The coast path

Under an hour

Walberswick, Dunwich and the heaths and marshes of the Suffolk coast, made for long walks and fish and chips.

A fuller local guide from the estate: the walks, the crab shacks and the quiet beaches, to follow here.

Questions

Asked and answered

Can we bring our dogs?
Yes. All the houses are dog friendly, and the estate's walks, water and gardens are the point of bringing them. Tell us how many when you enquire.
How many can stay?
Manor Farmhouse sleeps 14, Old Hall Farmhouse 10 and The Granary 6 to 8. Taken together the estate sleeps around 30, which suits weddings-adjacent gatherings, big birthdays and family reunions.
Do the houses have hot tubs?
Every house has its own outdoor hot tub, and the valley's dark skies to sit under.
Can we fish?
Yes: guests can fish the estate's large stocked lake during their stay. Bring rods, or ask when you book.
Where exactly is the estate?
At Ellingham, near Bungay, on the edge of the Broads National Park where Norfolk meets Suffolk: about ten minutes from Bungay, fifteen from Beccles and the Broads, and twenty-five from Southwold and the coast.
How do we book?
Directly with the estate: call or email and a person answers. The houses are also listed on Airbnb if you prefer to book there.

Book directly

Talk to a person, not a portal

No booking engine, no service fees: tell us your dates, your party and your dogs, and we will sort the rest.

Telephone

07881 954 216

Ask for Henry. Ring or WhatsApp. If he is out on the estate, Chez answers on 07708 901389.

Email

stay@ellinghamhall.co.uk

Dates, house and party size, and we reply the same day.

Find us

Ellingham, near Bungay

The Waveney Valley, Norfolk. Full directions with your booking.