This month we set tails wagging on the Suffolk coast with a trip to the wonderful market town of Woodbridge, followed by a nights stay at the dog-friendly White Lion Hotel in Aldeburgh.
A surprisingly sunny Sunday, after a week of torrential rain, I wasted no time in taking full advantage of the glorious weather. Fletcher, my husband and I packed our bags and headed for the Suffolk Coast. The first stop was Woodbridge.
A wander around cobbled streets and the Thoroughfare, quickly revealed that the town is more than happy to welcome visitors with their pooch. Most business owners made a point of coming out of the store to tell us Fletcher was allowed in, a lovely offer but with fashions and furnishings on display, I knew it was best to keep his hyper waggling tail outside with my husband while I had a browse. Most business and even some residential homes had a fresh bowl of water outside for thirsty dogs.
We went for a long walk along the River Deben, where of course our scuba spaniel just couldn’t resist jumping in and showing off his swimming skills, much to the amusement of passers-by and boat owners.
There’s a great choice of cute and colourful restaurants in Woodbridge, and you’ll certainly be spoilt for choice. After having worked up an appetite we headed to The Crown, having heard about its new dog-friendly al fresco dining terrace. We were joined by my parents and their two well-behaved, albeit, slightly boring dogs. The new additional large white-washed terrace provided welcome shade with its parasols.
Fletcher wasted no time in causing chaos and had to say hello to every other dog there before settling down in the corner. After convincing him that the stylish weaved-wicker fence, which makes the terrace private, was not a stick treat especially for him and bribing him with a new chew bone, we tucked into lunch.
The menu is plentiful and varied, and we opted for king prawns to start followed by the ‘catch of the day’, which was a delicious piece of Skate. I chose the tasty Southern fried chicken complete with pickled red cabbage, lemon yoghurt dip and courgette fries. Fletcher, forever the scrounger, approved too!
The rest of the afternoon was spent walking off our lunch, finished with salted caramel ice cream from the kiosk, located at the Riverside Restaurant & Theatre. With the tide out revealing the mud plains, we watched the swans navigate the slippery surface and tried to keep Fletcher from escaping from his lead to follow them in.
It was then back to the car for our next stop…Aldeburgh! Read our review of dog-friendly breaks in Aldeburgh at www.eastlife.co.uk/article/doggy-days-aldeburgh
