| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live 04:02 - May 4 with 6950 views | Hong_Kong_Bluey |
Ladies and Gents,
I am planning my return to the beautiful county of Suffolk after more than 30 years in the east. But things have changed too much in this time for me to have any real perspective on places to live.
So who better to ask, than the lads and lasses of TWTD spread over the county who can help guide me with some ideas.
Here's what I'm looking for:
Location: Suffolk. I really do not have a preference where in this fine land it should be. But I would like to remain in the county.
Village life, with at least one local pub.
Community feel, friendly people (goes without saying everyone is friendly I'm sure)
That's about it really. During my summer visit I will look around the area and try to zero in on a few options. So hopefully with the guidance of local knowledge on this forum, I can start to put a plan together.
Thank you all. |  | | |  |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 04:47 - May 4 with 5002 views | Lord_Lucan |
Westerfield or Wanchai eh? Difficult one that.
I’m not really keen on countryside so I’m the last person to ask - although I would say that if you go to a village with just one pub then it’s likely you’ll have nine sometime soon as pubs are closing all the time. |  |
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| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 05:36 - May 4 with 4981 views | bluelagos |
Honest opinions, from someone who did similar a few years back.
1. Are you sure you want to live in the countryside?
Welcoming? Good luck with that. The attitudes of villagers to 'outsiders" are often far from welcoming. It will help if you have any local credentials here, but country folk are far from welcoming to blewins.
Do make an effort with local clubs here, but accept you'll always be an outsider irrespective.
Public Transport will be sh1t and you will need to travel for a decent shop, medical facilities and or a cinema/night out other than in the local oub.
Of course you may love it, but a small town maybe a better solution, especially as you coming from a metropolis. Here you get facilities, access to the countryside and locals with a more outward looking view of life. (Woodbridge/Bury)
2. Villages.
Pubs will be important (community hub) but many country pubs are either closing or becoming gastrow@nk affairs that are anything but community hubs. Chedk out community pubs, but even they are dieing as the enthusiasm that kicks them off soon evaporates sadly.
Shops, I guess supermarkets deliver, but if you want for a local paper it is a pita driving/cycling 5 miles, especially in winter.
Have a look at places like Orford, Walberswick though proper pricey.
Honest opinion would be to go slighty bigger than a sleepy village and keep them as places,to visit/wander round. Base yersen in a smallish Town and you will have a lot more to do from your doorstep.
And if you access to a main route (A12/A14) or trainline then you can also do day trips more easily too.
*these are personal opinions which are like arseholes, everyone has one. |  |
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| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 09:02 - May 4 with 4739 views | gainsboroughblue |
The community pub thing is a bit of a thing of the past now, especially rurally
In order to survive, they've needed to basically become restaurants with a bar. Those that haven't done this have closed. |  |
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| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 09:08 - May 4 with 4708 views | BanksterDebtSlave |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 09:02 - May 4 by gainsboroughblue |
The community pub thing is a bit of a thing of the past now, especially rurally
In order to survive, they've needed to basically become restaurants with a bar. Those that haven't done this have closed. |
On the plus side it's nice that the locals have somewhere to dine out on the 4 or 5 weekends a year that they take up residence. |  |
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| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 09:09 - May 4 with 4712 views | giant_stow |
I know nothing about Suffolk villages but seeing as nobody has named one for yet, I present to you Great Glemham. I've stayed there a few times and it's pretty, peaceful, has a pub which seems to do ok (although not open 7 days a week) and is well located between a few nice towns, but still in the backlands. |  |
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| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 09:11 - May 4 with 4695 views | Lord_Lucan |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 09:08 - May 4 by BanksterDebtSlave |
On the plus side it's nice that the locals have somewhere to dine out on the 4 or 5 weekends a year that they take up residence. |
Freedom of movement innit. | |
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| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 09:15 - May 4 with 4670 views | BanksterDebtSlave |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 09:11 - May 4 by Lord_Lucan |
Freedom of movement innit. |
Only if you own a Tesla though. | |
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| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 09:27 - May 4 with 4655 views | belgablue |
Spent a year in Dedham recently, having lived away for a long time and really enjoyed it - is a lovely spot but not the cheapest. It's technically in Essex but if you walk across the bridge in the village you're in Suffolk! The Sun is a fantastic pub/resto and there are other options as well. |  |
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| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 09:28 - May 4 with 4652 views | NthQldITFC |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 04:47 - May 4 by Lord_Lucan |
Westerfield or Wanchai eh? Difficult one that.
I’m not really keen on countryside so I’m the last person to ask - although I would say that if you go to a village with just one pub then it’s likely you’ll have nine sometime soon as pubs are closing all the time. |
I'm a real fan of those slips of the keyboard that utterly change the meaning of a sentence.
The world would be a better place if the reality was '...you’ll have nine sometime soon as pubs are cloning all the time' |  |
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| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 09:41 - May 4 with 4614 views | leitrimblue |
I often stay in Clare when in Engerland. Nice village, few pubs, shop and a chipper. And Haverhill on your doorstep if you craving a bit of culture |  | | |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 10:07 - May 4 with 4571 views | clive_baker |
Your criteria shouldn't be hard to achieve, most Suffolk villages have nice neighbourly and community feels to them from my experience. And many, especially the larger ones, still have pubs which are often a great way to have a few pints and meet people.
Location within Suffolk can certainly play a part on price. Coastal areas to the East can be particularly pricey, but come inland a bit and there's way more for your money. Too far West and it's leafy, sub 30 miles from Cambridge and A11 South down to London territory which unsurprisingly adds a few quid too. The location can probably influence the 'feel' too, more than people realise. Sudbury might as well be Essex now, and parts of North Suffolk feel a bit NFN IMO.
A nice mid ground might be somewhere within a reasonable proximity to BSE. I think Bury is a lovely Town and only getting nicer, some great places to eat and drink and is becoming quite a popular destination for day trippers now. You're also not a million miles (40 minutes by car or rail) from Cambridge, good access to A14, Ipswich, day trips to the beach etc. Woolpit, Walsham-Le-Willows, Pakenham, Ixworth, Barrow, Cockfield, Beyton and various others meet the criteria.
If you want South look at Cavendish, Long Melford, Lavenham, Monks Eleigh.
Mid: Rattlesden, Cockfield, Haughley, Debenham, Bacton etc although it's an area I know less well.
East: Loads of nice villages. Framlingham is a nice little town actually, I think that's not a bad shout. Woodbridge. Aldeburgh and Southwold if you've got doe. Snape. Orford.
I think every place I've mentioned here has at least 1 pub. |  |
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| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 10:20 - May 4 with 4540 views | Ewan_Oozami |
I live in a lovely village between Ipswich and Woodbridge - it has a pub, tons of local groups covering a wide variety of activities, a fairly mixed demographic for a Suffolk village - close to the A12 and near to the unofficial Ipswich Northern Bypass - houses old and new available and plenty of resident Town fans - and if you're a Geoguessr, here's a clue...
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| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 10:32 - May 4 with 4512 views | woodbridge_blue |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 10:20 - May 4 by Ewan_Oozami |
I live in a lovely village between Ipswich and Woodbridge - it has a pub, tons of local groups covering a wide variety of activities, a fairly mixed demographic for a Suffolk village - close to the A12 and near to the unofficial Ipswich Northern Bypass - houses old and new available and plenty of resident Town fans - and if you're a Geoguessr, here's a clue...
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Tricky.....not sure how it can be close to both the A12 and the unofficial Northern bypass.....but I'll have a stab at Tuddenham or Witnesham? |  | | |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 10:35 - May 4 with 4495 views | Heathlander |
I lived in Witnesham for 8 years. Moved out two years ago. Lovely little village in the countryside. But only three miles to Ipswich. Local pub the Barley Mow is still going strong. Was run by Roger Osborne's brother Les at the time.
There are loads of walks around the countryside there. I lived in the lower end near the war memorial. The pub was the place where we met the villagers. All very friendly. Funnily enough even though it is only three miles outside Ipswich the Suffolk accent was so much stronger.
Witnesham is just past Westerfield. Good access to the Swan, the Railway and a lovely pub in Tuddenham also in Swilland (walking distance). Had a lovely 8 years out there. No shops within walking distance but worked in Town so that was never a problem.
Moved because I wanted more space as lived in a two bed cottage. And just Eat don't deliver there :). Now back on the outskirts of Ipswich. |  | | |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 10:37 - May 4 with 4490 views | Ewan_Oozami |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 10:32 - May 4 by woodbridge_blue |
Tricky.....not sure how it can be close to both the A12 and the unofficial Northern bypass.....but I'll have a stab at Tuddenham or Witnesham? |
Further east... | |
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| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 10:42 - May 4 with 4468 views | woodbridge_blue |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 10:37 - May 4 by Ewan_Oozami |
Further east... |
Grundisburgh? | | | |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 11:05 - May 4 with 4386 views | Ewan_Oozami |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 10:42 - May 4 by woodbridge_blue |
Grundisburgh? |
Might be, depends on how you pronounce it :-) | |
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| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 11:39 - May 4 with 4310 views | Churchman |
My dads village Waldringfield is ok. Near Martlesham and Woodbridge, it has a local pub, village hall and a school, but you do need a car as public transport is one bus a day - whoopee. |  | | |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 11:43 - May 4 with 4302 views | woodbridge_blue |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 11:39 - May 4 by Churchman |
My dads village Waldringfield is ok. Near Martlesham and Woodbridge, it has a local pub, village hall and a school, but you do need a car as public transport is one bus a day - whoopee. |
And a cricket team. | | | |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 11:56 - May 4 with 4272 views | J2BLUE |
I have nothing of value to offer in this thread (or some might say any thread) but I find the idea of living in the country utterly terrifying. Feels like it would be disconnecting from the world. |  |
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| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 12:03 - May 4 with 4227 views | Meadowlark |
I can't help. I live in Lowestoft.
But I would seriously suggest it should be somewhere with a railway station. |  | | |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 12:21 - May 4 with 4154 views | NthQldITFC |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 11:56 - May 4 by J2BLUE |
I have nothing of value to offer in this thread (or some might say any thread) but I find the idea of living in the country utterly terrifying. Feels like it would be disconnecting from the world. |
I am exactly the opposite. I could never live in a city again because I feel disconnected from nature. | |
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| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 16:09 - May 4 with 3914 views | Sacrebleu |
If you like a few hills in your life head West. Around the Stour valley. Clare already mentioned. Hawkedon is a lovely village with probably the best pub in the area. Pricey I would imagine. Easy run to Cambridge, London, Newmarket and BSE. |  | | |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 16:25 - May 4 with 3871 views | Oldsmoker |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 10:07 - May 4 by clive_baker |
Your criteria shouldn't be hard to achieve, most Suffolk villages have nice neighbourly and community feels to them from my experience. And many, especially the larger ones, still have pubs which are often a great way to have a few pints and meet people.
Location within Suffolk can certainly play a part on price. Coastal areas to the East can be particularly pricey, but come inland a bit and there's way more for your money. Too far West and it's leafy, sub 30 miles from Cambridge and A11 South down to London territory which unsurprisingly adds a few quid too. The location can probably influence the 'feel' too, more than people realise. Sudbury might as well be Essex now, and parts of North Suffolk feel a bit NFN IMO.
A nice mid ground might be somewhere within a reasonable proximity to BSE. I think Bury is a lovely Town and only getting nicer, some great places to eat and drink and is becoming quite a popular destination for day trippers now. You're also not a million miles (40 minutes by car or rail) from Cambridge, good access to A14, Ipswich, day trips to the beach etc. Woolpit, Walsham-Le-Willows, Pakenham, Ixworth, Barrow, Cockfield, Beyton and various others meet the criteria.
If you want South look at Cavendish, Long Melford, Lavenham, Monks Eleigh.
Mid: Rattlesden, Cockfield, Haughley, Debenham, Bacton etc although it's an area I know less well.
East: Loads of nice villages. Framlingham is a nice little town actually, I think that's not a bad shout. Woodbridge. Aldeburgh and Southwold if you've got doe. Snape. Orford.
I think every place I've mentioned here has at least 1 pub. |
Framlingham is a good shout.
Some of the neighbours tend to play a lot of music. |  |
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| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 16:41 - May 4 with 3840 views | TractorWood |
| TWTD Hive Mind: Suffolk Villages to Live on 16:09 - May 4 by Sacrebleu |
If you like a few hills in your life head West. Around the Stour valley. Clare already mentioned. Hawkedon is a lovely village with probably the best pub in the area. Pricey I would imagine. Easy run to Cambridge, London, Newmarket and BSE. |
Stour valley is unbelievable. Some of the horsey villages around Newmarket are beautiful too like Moulton, Dalham, Upend and Ousden.
Clare is nice but it's a pretty busy little town imo. It's not a village.
Villages like Norton, Beyton and Rattlesden are lovely in mid-Suffolk.
No idea about the East. Coast innit. |  |
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