Home / Itineraries / Two days of Suffolk and Norfolk vineyards
Vineyard itinerary · Suffolk and Norfolk
This trip crosses Suffolk from west to east, starting in the quiet country between Bury St Edmunds and Sudbury and finishing in the Waveney Valley on the Norfolk border. It is planned for a Friday and Saturday, because that is when all five vineyards are open together.
Opening days and prices checked on each vineyard’s own website in October 2026. See every Suffolk and Norfolk vineyard for more.
A gentle day in the farmland north of Sudbury, with two small cellar doors a few miles apart and dinner at a vineyard restaurant near Bury St Edmunds.
Late morning
The cellar door shop in the black barns at Hartest opens Monday to Friday, 11am to 4pm, and sells tasting flights of its still and sparkling wines, with no booking needed. It is run by a small team, so call ahead on 01284 830799 to check it is open. Guided tours (£35) return in 2027 on dates still to be released.
No need to book
Afternoon
ARK’s winery at Mount Farm, Stanstead, opens Wednesday to Saturday, 10am to 5pm, without an appointment, so you can call in to taste and buy. The lane in is narrow, so take it slowly. On selected Sundays it also serves vineyard lunches from 1pm (£30 for two courses, £38 for three), which must be booked ahead.
No need to book
Evening
The Leaping Hare restaurant at Wyken serves dinner on Fridays and Saturdays from 6.30pm, and its country store sells the estate’s own wines; book a table ahead. Vineyard tours (£25, with two still wines, the sparkling wine and the gin) run only on Sundays at 11am from April to September, so add a Sunday morning if you want one.
Book ahead
Food: There is no café at Giffords Hall or ARK, so have lunch at The Crown on the green at Hartest, a few minutes from Giffords Hall (check food times with the pub on 01284 830250). Dinner is at the Leaping Hare at Wyken.
Getting between them: About 25 minutes from Bury St Edmunds to Giffords Hall, about 15 minutes on to ARK Wines, then about 45 minutes to Wyken at Stanton, which is about 20 minutes from Bury.
Head east to a long-running vineyard near Framlingham, then north to the Norfolk border for lunch and a tasting at Flint.
Morning
Shawsgate’s shop opens on Saturdays all year: 10am to 5pm from May to September and 11am to 4pm from October to April. You can walk the vineyard on your own for free with a map and information sheet from the shop, and dogs on leads are welcome. Use the postcode IP13 9HZ and keep going if your satnav stops at a field entrance; booked tours and experience days run on set dates, listed on its website.
No need to book
Lunch and afternoon
Flint’s cellar door at Earsham opens Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 4pm, and Flint Kitchen serves lunch Wednesday to Sunday, 12pm to 2.30pm. Book a 30-minute guided tasting (£15) online, as times vary; it is the place to try English sparkling wine made by the Charmat (tank) method. The two-hour Flint Tour (£25) runs only on Fridays and Sundays at 10am, and bookings cannot be changed within 72 hours.
Book ahead
Food: Lunch at Flint Kitchen, which can be booked or taken as a drop-in, or in the barn wine bar. Framlingham, with its castle, has cafés and pubs if you want coffee first.
Getting between them: About 50 minutes from Bury St Edmunds to Shawsgate, then about 35 minutes from Shawsgate to Flint. Bungay is 5 minutes from Flint.
Giffords Hall’s shop stays open on weekdays, ARK Wines opens Wednesday to Saturday, and Flint keeps its cellar door, barn wine bar with a log burner and lunches going, with Sunday roasts through November and December. Shawsgate’s shop opens on Fridays and Saturdays only from October to April, Wyken’s restaurant and store stay open while its gardens close, and Wyken’s tours stop until April. Late-autumn events include ARK’s harvest party on 21 November and Flint’s Christmas Fayre on 29 November 2026.
Coming up, from the vineyards’ own websites. All vineyard events.
Music and social
A harvest celebration at Mount Farm Vineyard with live music and DJ sets. Food is on sale, and Ark wines are sold by the glass and bottle.
Saturday 21 November 2026 · Live music through the day · £10 early bird, £15 general; under-14s free · Book ahead
Workshop
Make a Christmas wreath with Nova at Mount Farm Vineyard, with bottomless mulled wine. You can add a Swedish-style Christmas buffet.
Sunday 29 November 2026 · 11am to 4pm · £40 wreath, £35 buffet, £75 both · Book ahead
None of these five vineyards has rooms, but Flint lists places to stay in Bungay, Beccles and nearby villages on its website. For the first night look in Bury St Edmunds or nearby Lavenham, and for the second in Framlingham, Bungay or Beccles.
Cottages in and around Bury St Edmunds, including Lavenham, handy for Giffords Hall, ARK Wines and Wyken.
A tour of Flint Vineyard in the Waveney valley with a tasting of its wines.
Good to know The same price as booking with Flint, which charges £25 a place.
Friday and Saturday. Giffords Hall opens Monday to Friday, ARK Wines Wednesday to Saturday, Shawsgate never on Sundays, and Wyken serves dinner only on Fridays and Saturdays, while Flint opens Tuesday to Sunday.
Not for the cellar doors at Giffords Hall, ARK Wines or Shawsgate, or for Shawsgate’s self-guided walk. Book Flint’s tastings and tours online, a table for dinner at Wyken, and any tours ahead.
Not easily. Bury St Edmunds and Norwich have stations, but the vineyards are in the countryside with poor public transport, so you need a car or a pre-booked taxi.
Dogs on leads are welcome at Shawsgate and at Flint, and on Giffords Hall tours. Check with Wyken and ARK before taking a dog.
Yes, on the right days. Giffords Hall, ARK Wines and Flint stay open, Wyken’s restaurant keeps going, and Shawsgate’s shop opens on Fridays and Saturdays, but tours mostly pause until spring.
What is on at the vineyards that month, new tours worth booking, and our seasonal picks, from Christmas vouchers to harvest days. One email a month. Unsubscribe whenever you like.
