Stage start
Knettishall Heath
Trailhead
The start, with nowhere to stay. The nearest place on the trail map is the Swan, a pub listing camping about 3 km south of the start; its listing gives no website. Thetford is the nearest station.
Knettishall Heath to Little Cressingham
Peddars Way · Stage 1
Walking time measured on the mapped line (TrailSplits time model, moving time; within 22 % on four in five test legs). Outside Switzerland our walking times often run short of the times route operators publish; treat them as optimistic. Climb measured on the mapped line, on terrain heights.
23.0 kmStage distance
235 mAscent, measured
5 h 50Walking time, measured
1Stage number
From Knettishall Heath in Suffolk to Little Cressingham: 23.3 km published, 23.0 km on our line. There is nowhere to stay at the start. Little Cressingham is a hamlet with few beds: Phoenix House, about 1.8 km south, takes cash or cheque only, and the Olde Windmill Inn at Great Cressingham, about 3 km away, may let Peddars Way walkers camp free if they eat there.
Best season: All year. There is no obvious best time to walk the trail, National Trails says: summer weather is generally better and the hedgerows are in blossom, spring and autumn bring the bird migrations, and winter can give some fine walking. Some campsites are seasonal: the one at Holme is closed until the 2027 season. Before you go
Loading topographic map…
Flat (<5%)
Green: Knettishall Heath to Little Cressingham. Grey: full trail. Elevation follows this mapped track.
Knettishall Heath to Little Cressingham
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Where this stage starts and ends
Facts read from the guide's sources and OpenStreetMap on 13 October 2026. A page can change after we read it, so confirm with your accommodation before you rely on a date or a bed.
Stage end · overnight
Little Cressingham
Town
A hamlet with two B&B entries on the trail map, neither with a website. Phoenix House, about 1.8 km south, and the Olde Windmill Inn at Great Cressingham are nearby.
A town or village: find accommodation yourself. TrailSplits has not checked what is open.
Phoenix House B&B · Hotel
Season 2026: 2026 dates not published
The Olde Windmill Inn · Camping spot
Season 2026: 2026 dates not published
Walking time for this leg
No walking time is published for this leg. Measured on the mapped line, the stage takes about 5 h 50 of walking.
Make it your trip
Book your nights ahead
Each stay is booked with its owner; there is no booking for the whole trail. The inland villages have few beds: Little Cressingham has two B&B entries on the trail map, Castle Acre and Sedgeford are the main overnight stops, and there is nowhere to stay at Knettishall Heath, so book early. On the coast, beds fill up in summer, National Trails says, and some places have refused single-night stays. Two listed websites, the Ostrich Inn at Castle Acre and Home Farm Stables at Holme, did not answer on 13 October 2026: check that they still take guests.
Knettishall Heath to Holme-next-the-Sea
The National Trail's four sections, a night at the end of each.
Plan this journeyKnettishall Heath to Castle Acre
The southern half in two days, to Castle Acre and its priory.
Plan this journeyCastle Acre to Holme-next-the-Sea
The northern half in two days, to the coast at Holme.
Plan this journeyWeather this week
Loading the forecast for on the trail (41 m)…
Weather by month
Typical weather on this stage, around 15–67 m. Select a month to see why it is rated as it is.
| Month | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weather | Mixed | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Mixed |
| Day / night | 7°/2° | 8°/2° | 11°/3° | 13°/4° | 17°/7° | 20°/10° | 22°/12° | 22°/12° | 19°/10° | 15°/7° | 10°/4° | 8°/2° |
| Rain, mm | 55 | 48 | 42 | 40 | 45 | 63 | 64 | 67 | 60 | 72 | 70 | 58 |
| Snow at high point | Frost | Frost | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Daylight | 8 h 10 | 9 h 52 | 11 h 46 | 13 h 52 | 15 h 42 | 16 h 47 | 16 h 23 | 14 h 47 | 12 h 46 | 10 h 45 | 8 h 49 | 7 h 43 |
Source: TerraClimate 1991–2020 monthly averages. Averages for the area at each point’s elevation (4 km grid, corrected for height). Not a forecast or a report of current trail conditions. Snow at the high point is estimated with a simple snowpack model from these temperatures and precipitation, not observed; steep islands and high summits can hold more snow than it shows. Daylight is for the 15th of each month. Hut, transport and park seasons are separate: check them for your dates.
Before you go
Prepare for the Peddars Way
Arrange your stays, food and travel first, then check conditions again near departure.
Closures and diversions now
On 13 October 2026 the National Trails map listed four diversions on this National Trail, all on the Norfolk Coast Path (Skelding Hill, Beeston Bump, Morston and Overstrand) and none on the Peddars Way. Check the map before you set off.
National Trails: trail information and mapGetting to Knettishall Heath
The nearest station is Thetford, managed by Greater Anglia. From there walkers need a bus to the start, National Trails says (trail information, read 13 October 2026), but it names no route, and we found no source for one: plan this leg before you go.
National Rail: Thetford stationFew beds inland
The inland villages have few beds. Phoenix House near Little Cressingham takes cash or cheque only, and the Olde Windmill Inn at Great Cressingham may let Peddars Way walkers camp free if they have a meal there (National Trails listings, read 13 October 2026). Castle Acre and Sedgeford have the most choice.
National Trails: trail informationWhere the Peddars Way ends
The Peddars Way meets the coast at Holme-next-the-Sea. National Trails' fourth section runs on along the Norfolk Coast Path to Hunstanton, 14.3 km in all (route description, read 13 October 2026); this page stops at Holme. To go on along the coast, see our Norfolk Coast Path guide.
TrailSplits: Norfolk Coast PathThe Holme campsite is closed
The Norfolk Coast Path Camping and Glamping site at Holme was open only from 24 July to 1 September 2026; it opens again in the 2027 season, its owner says (read 13 October 2026).
Norfolk Coast Path Camping and Glamping: HolmeGetting there
Connect your journey
Travel around Knettishall Heath to Little Cressingham.
Google Maps journey searches, not confirmed services. A mountain endpoint may need a booked transfer or an additional walk.
To the start at Knettishall Heath
The nearest station is Thetford (Greater Anglia). National Trails says walkers need a bus from there to the start, but names no route: check before you go.
National Rail: Thetford stationTrains to Norfolk
Greater Anglia trains leave London Liverpool Street and King's Cross every hour and reach Norwich or King's Lynn in just under two hours, National Trails says.
National Trails: trail informationHome from Holme-next-the-Sea
Buses serve Hunstanton, west along the coast, National Trails says, and the Coasthopper runs further east, from Wells-next-the-Sea to Mundesley; Travel Norfolk has the routes and times. Or walk on: the Norfolk Coast Path continues from Holme.
Travel Norfolk: buses and trainsTake your trip with you
Offline maps
Prepare each section while you still have a connection: between the villages the signal can be weak.
Keep your route and maps on your phone for places without a signal. For multi-day trips, prepare them in the installed TrailSplits app.
- Open this trail in the app. Install TrailSplits, then open this trail there. On iPhone, downloads in a browser may not be available in the installed app.
- Choose your route or stages. Choose Prepare offline above. Wait for the route and maps to finish downloading.
- Try it before leaving coverage. Switch offline, close and reopen the app, then use My Hikes to start navigation. Repeat for every part you will need.
Saving a bookmark is not a map download. Storage can be cleared by your device; keep a backup map for remote trips.
Route & sources
Route map & sources
National Trails publishes the Peddars Way and Norfolk Coast Path as one National Trail, 129.5 miles (208 km). This page covers its inland first part, the Peddars Way, from Knettishall Heath to the coast at Holme-next-the-Sea, about 4 days, National Trails says, in its four sections. It publishes no stage times. The four sections add up to 78.8 km as published, because the fourth, 14.3 km, runs on along the coast to Hunstanton; on National Trails' route file the Peddars Way is 74.8 km, 8.0 km of it from Sedgeford to Holme. The line here is the route on OpenStreetMap (relation 77958, from the planet of 11 October 2026): 74.8 km, cut at the four section ends, 23.0, 19.2, 23.7 and 8.8 km against the published 23.3, 18.8, 22.4 (to "Sedgeford and Fring") and 14.3 km. From Holme the Norfolk Coast Path continues along the coast: it has its own guide. No closure or diversion was listed on the Peddars Way on 13 October 2026. Our climb is measured on terrain heights; the way is flat to gently rolling.
Official guidance and mapped-source comparison checked 13 October 2026. Map data is a route reference, not confirmation of today's path, weather or accommodation availability.
National Trails: Peddars Way and Norfolk Coast PathMap data © OpenStreetMap contributors · Source relation