The Cattle Market

Fakenham's old cattle market is one of those places that tells you far more about a town than any museum could. The market buildings themselves - Victorian brick and Victorian practicality - still stand in the town centre, a proper working reminder of when livestock trading was the lifeblood of rural Norfolk.

You won't find much in the way of formal attractions here. What you get instead is a genuine sense of place. The architecture speaks for itself: functional, no-nonsense Victorian design built to handle the chaos of hundreds of cattle, sheep and pigs passing through weekly. The open-air sections and covered halls are still visible, and locals will tell you stories about market days that went on from dawn until dusk.

It's worth an hour's wander if you're interested in agricultural history or Victorian Norfolk. Photographers find something compelling about the weathered brick and the way the buildings sit cheek-by-jowl with modern Fakenham. Families with young children might find it a bit sparse - there's no interactive element, no entry fee, nothing to do beyond looking and imagining.

If you're based at Norfolk Coast Caravans and Camping or one of the other parks nearby, Fakenham makes for a straightforward half-day trip. The market itself is free to wander, though opening hours aren't formally listed - it's very much a case of showing up and having a look around the exterior. Early morning, when the light catches the brickwork properly, is genuinely lovely.