Cycling The Rebellion Way, Norfolk

Description

The Rebellion Way Map of the Route.

The Rebellion Way is a 373km/232-mile cycling adventure developed by Cycling UK around Norfolk, starting and ending in Norwich, it winds through Thetford Forest, to the coast at Wells-next-the-Sea and Sheringham, and back via Aylsham, and our trip is fully guided and supported with a two-person Halcyon team including a fully qualified first aid trained cycling guide and a support driver/fully trained and equipped bike mechanic. Halcyon Cycling Holidays is proud to be working in partnership with Cycofix (see latest news) to deliver this cycling holiday.

The Rebellion Way meanders along a mix of quiet, mostly flat back roads, sandy tracks, woodland trails, byways, cycle paths and bridleways, passing historic sites like Boudicca’s capital, making it an accessible, scenic adventure for various bike types and it’s a fantastic cycling trip in an area of stunning rural beauty exploring the very best Norfolk has to offer.

Although the route covers a considerable distance over the week, the gentle slopes mean there is very little challenging climbing. The off-road sections are fast, non-technical, mainly straightforward, and mostly unaffected by the weather, making the journey quite manageable. Norfolk typically enjoys mild weather, and there are plenty of spots along the way where you can relax, eat, drink and recharge, and Halcyon Cycling Holidays has planned and will recommend places to eat each day and refuel, and refreshments will be available to purchase from the support van daily. Please note you will be able to top up with water free of charge!

The Rebellion Way has been specifically designed to be not just achievable but very enjoyable for riders of all levels. The terrain is a mix of varied surfaces, including tarmac, gravel, sand, and forest paths. 

Accommodation for this trip is in mainly 2-3 *hotels or bed and breakfast establishments, on a bed and breakfast basis, sharing a twin or double ensuite rooms. Please note there is a few rooms available for sole occupancy (supplement payable, see price section).

On this holiday, we also offer our group the opportunity to enjoy some downtime and dine together in a pre-selected choice of local restaurants, hostelries or dine at our accommodations. It’s a great way to get to know each other and enjoy some of the very best food and drink the area has to offer. This information will be provided in your itinerary and confirmed by your Halcyon Cycling team on the tour. There is no pressure for you to join the group in an evening, just let the guide know you will not be attending. 

Everyone who is booked on this trip will receive a bespoke itinerary via email about one week before departure explaining every element of your trip. There are some real highlights to relish on this trip including the historic city of Norwich with its splendid architecture, the impressive Kings Lynn, the beautiful villages of Diss and Burnham Market, Well-next-the-Sea and the town of Sheringham, a fantastic place to enjoy an evening sunset, as well as coastal cycling, rolling country lanes, majestic historic places and estates such as Holkham Hall and chocolate box towns and villages such as Holt, with its many independent shops, full of character and charm. The Rebellion Way is truly an adventure, waiting to be discovered and enjoyed.

Highlights:

• Opportunity to explore historic Norwich and its splendid architecture
• Opportunity to enjoy the port town of Kings Lynn and its naval past
• Experience some real rural places of interest including Diss, Burnham Market, Wells-next-the-Sea, Holt and many more along the way
• Stunning Holkham Hall & Estate
• Coastal cycling, beach huts and British seaside highlights
• Historic churches, thatched cottages and scenes from a time gone by
• Miles of gentle cycling through parts of the Norfolk Broads
• The beaches and seaside atmosphere of Sheringham

Itinerary

This is a fully guided and supported 8 day cycling trip. Itinerary as follows:

Day 1 - Sunday 20 September 2026

Arrival in Norwich
If you are travelling by train, you will arrive at Norwich station. Arrangements can be made to transfer you and your bike to the hotel, but this will need to be arranged at the time of booking. For those driving, simply make your way to the hotel in Norwich by the designated time. A representative from Halcyon Cycling Holidays will meet you and show you to your accommodation. There is overnight car parking at the hotel for the first night. You are then free to spend time exploring Norwich. Please note, an evening meal has been booked at a local restaurant or hostelry to welcome everyone on the trip. All planned evening meals are an extra cost. Prices based on a bed and breakfast basis.

Day 2 - Monday 21 September 2026

Norwich to Thetford, (50 miles/82km, ascent 1643ft/501m)
After breakfast, we will assemble outside the accommodation, and the Halcyon ride leader will explain the ride in detail to the group. Today’s ride is a great start to the trip with lots to see and experience. After we leave Norwich, we ride through Norfolk’s rural landscape, through a host of quaint villages, on a mixture of country roads, lanes and trackways. You will have the opportunity to admire a host of thatched cottages, majestic manor houses, impressive historic churches in an area not touched by contemporary living. It’s a magical start to your cycling holiday. Enroute, you will have the opportunity to stock up on refreshments from the Halcyon van and we will recommend a place to enjoy a late lunch on day 1. You will also cycle through Diss and have the opportunity to spend some time here with its mixture of independent shops, cafes and services, before cycling through parts of Suffolk before ending our second day in Thetford, famous as the place where Dad’s Army was based and filmed in the past and our first experience of its sprawling forest and off-road tracks and trails.

After the ride, please note, an evening meal has been booked at a local restaurant or hostelry for everyone to enjoy.

Day 3 - Tuesday 23 September 2026

Thetford to Kings Lynn (55 miles/88km, ascent 2017ft/615m)
After breakfast, we will assemble outside the accommodation, and the Halcyon ride leader will explain the ride in detail to the group. Today’s ride starts with a host of wooded trails as we make our way through the sprawl of Thetford Forest, Oxbrough with its stunning manor house confirms the end of our forest section. Our ride then continues to Swaffham and lunch. After lunch, we cycle through open countryside, and the Nar valley, and this section is specifically known for its sandy trails and tracks. Onwards we cycle on to King’s Lynn and its many cycle paths before we arrive in the historic town and waterfront and end of this day’s ride.

After the ride, please note, an evening meal has been booked at a local restaurant or hostelry for everyone to enjoy.

Day 4 - Wednesday 24 September 2026

King’s Lynn to Well-next-the-Sea (43 miles/69km, ascent 1722ft/524m)
After breakfast, we will assemble outside the accommodation, and the Halcyon ride leader will explain the ride in detail to the group. Today’s ride includes a lot of road cycling on quiet lanes and back roads with very little off road. We leave Kings Lynn on local cycle paths before we arrive at Sandringham, where the King and Queen enjoy many a holiday and is their usual Christmas jaunt. After Sandringham, this section is undulating through villages Dersingham and Snettisham, where we stop for refreshments and to enjoy the splendour of St Marys Church, which stands proud overlooking the village green. Hunstanton is next, a pretty Victorian coastal resort with its colourful beach huts and onwards to beautiful and serene Burnham Market, known as “Chelsea by the Sea”, with its boutique shops, eateries, cafes and is our lunch stop on today’s ride. After lunch, we then enter Holkham Hall and Estate, an impressive and imposing Mansion House with extensive grounds. This is a lovely ‘off road section’ and afterwards we cycle via Holkham Pines Nature Reserve to Wells-next-the-Sea, a lovely traditional Norfolk coastal town and destination for day 4.

After the ride, please note, an evening meal has been booked at a local restaurant or hostelry for everyone to enjoy.

Day 5 - Thursday 25 September 2026

Wells-next-the-Sea to Sheringham (36miles/58km, ascent 1522ft/464m)
After breakfast, we will assemble outside the accommodation, and the Halcyon ride leader will explain the ride in detail to the group. One of the first places of interest on day 5 is Little Walsingham, a place of pilgrimage and a site full of religious significance. We will have the opportunity to stop here to have a look round and soak up the sites as its only a short ride. Onwards we cycle through a few villages such as Little and Great Snoring onto Holt, our lunch stop for today. It’s a place of top quality with many pubs, cafes, independent shops, a department store and places to eat. After Holt it’s a short ride to our next destination on this tour, Sheringham, a delightful coastal Norfolk town full of charm and nostalgia. As it’s the shortest day, you will have the opportunity to enjoy the evening sunset (fingers crossed), have a dip or walk on the beach and visit the promenade.

After the ride, please note, an evening meal has been booked at a local restaurant or hostelry for everyone to enjoy.

Day 6 - Friday 26 September 2026

Sheringham to Norwich (48miles/79km, ascent 1805ft/550m)
After breakfast, we will assemble outside the accommodation, and the Halcyon ride leader will explain the ride in detail to the group.

Today is the final days ride and it offers a mixture of terrains and riding. The first section is riding by the coast before we head inland to Aylsham and join the Bure Valley path. It’s a good, well-packed, single-track route that runs parallel to the Bure Valley Railway between Aylsham and Wroxham. Onwards, our route from here takes in the Norfolk Broads, cycling through Wroxham, Woodbastwick and other pretty places before arriving at our destination, Norwich and the end of the Rebellion Way!

Well done, congratulations, you have ridden the Rebellion Way, and you should be proud to finish this epic adventure with your group cycling mates!

Once in Norwich, you will need to cycle to the hotel and our final night’s stay. After the ride, please note, an evening meal has been booked at a local restaurant or hostelry for everyone to enjoy.

Day 7 - Saturday 27 September 2026

Final day and departure
After breakfast, we will all leave for home.  A transfer back to Norwich station will be provided if you are travelling by train or, if driving, you can leave directly from Norwich after checking out from your accommodation.

The Cycling

Each individual ride is graded and detailed in the itinerary description. The rides on this cycling trip have been graded as 3 (steady).

This trip is suitable for most bike types except road bikes and is most suited to e-bikes, gravel, hybrid with off-road tyres and mountain bikes. 

Group Size: 8-12 people.

Dates & Prices

21-26 September 2026, Price £995. Sole occupancy supplement £300.

The price stated is per person.

Additional Info

What’s included

• Accommodation (shared twin/ double rooms ensuite or rooms for sole occupancy) on a bed and breakfast basis, staying in a variety of hotels and bed and breakfast establishments. 
• Services of a first aid trained ride leader and guide and a support member of staff who is a fully qualified bike mechanic
• Baggage transfers throughout the trip
• Bespoke and detailed itinerary emailed to you personally a week before travel
• Cycling UK GPX file of The Rebellion Way
• Return transfer from local railway station to accommodation if pre-booked.
• Local Halcyon Cycling Holidays representative for the duration of the holiday
• Full financial protection (see booking conditions) 

What’s Not Included

• Bike and helmets 
• Travel or flight costs or charges for travelling with your bike (if applicable)
• Meals not stated in the itinerary. Evening meals are planned but are an extra cost
• Personal clothing and equipment
• Personal expenditure (souvenirs, bar bills, hotel facilities etc)
• Entrance fees to cultural or historical sites and visitor centres
• Other optional activities
• Tips for guides, drivers, support staff
• Transfer costs such as local taxis, minibuses to meals booked at local pubs and restaurants

Transfer information

If you are arriving by train and you require a return transfer from Norwich railway station to the hotel, please complete the appropriate section on the booking form to request a transfer. A free return transfer is available between Norwich railway station and the hotel.

Bike Hire

Bike hire can be arranged with one of the local bike shops in Norwich. Ask one of our team about arranging for bike hire at the time of booking as this is a special request. On all of our cycling holidays, wearing of a helmet is mandatory.

Gallery