Best Beaches in Suffolk
Written by UK Hidden Gems Editorial
Updated 5 August 2026
The best beaches in Suffolk are Dunwich Beach, Bawdsey Beach, The Scallop at Aldeburgh Beach, Walberswick Beach, Covehithe Beach and Dunwich Heath Beach.
The Suffolk coast is a soft, shifting edge of shingle banks, low crumbling cliffs, reedbeds and lost land, a place where the sea is steadily taking the shore back. These six beaches run along it from Covehithe in the north down to Bawdsey at the mouth of the Deben, and they are quieter and wilder than the county's seaside towns.
Several carry a real story of loss and change: a great medieval port swept almost entirely into the sea, a church crumbling at the cliff edge, some of the fastest-eroding cliffs in Britain. Others hold history of a different kind, from the birthplace of radar to a steel sculpture set on the shingle in memory of a composer.
Behind many of them lie the reedbeds and heaths of nature reserves rich in birds. This is a coast for walking, birdwatching and beachcombing under wide skies, not for busy resort sands.
It is a shorter list of six genuine Suffolk beaches rather than a padded one. Here are six to seek out along the Suffolk coast.
Dunwich Beach
Photo: John Goldsmith via Geograph.org.uk
Dunwich Beach is a shingle shore at the small village of Dunwich, all that fronts what was once a large medieval port. Storms and the steady loss of the cliffs swept most of the old town into the sea over the centuries, and much of it now lies drowned offshore.
On the cliff above stand the ruins of Greyfriars, a medieval friary, the most substantial piece of the lost town left on land. A cafe, a pub and a small museum serve the village today.
Bawdsey Beach
Photo: Geographer via Geograph.org.uk
Bawdsey Beach is a shingle shore at the point where the River Deben meets the sea. Banks of pebbles run along the front, with low, soft cliffs and the turrets of Bawdsey Manor rising just behind.
At the river mouth a small ferry crosses in summer to Felixstowe Ferry on the far bank. Bawdsey Manor holds a large place in history: it was here, from 1936, that Britain's first radar station was built and the Chain Home early-warning system developed under Robert Watson-Watt, work that would matter enormously a few years later.
Today the shore is quiet, all shingle, sea and sky, with the old manor behind.
The Scallop at Aldeburgh Beach
Photo: Richard Humphrey via Geograph.org.uk
The Scallop is a large steel sculpture standing on the shingle beach at Aldeburgh, in the shape of two halves of a broken scallop shell rising from the stones. The work of the artist Maggi Hambling, it was put up in 2003 in memory of the composer Benjamin Britten, who lived in the town and walked this shore, and its top edge is cut through with a line from his opera Peter Grimes, about the voices that will not be drowned.
It has divided local opinion since it appeared, and is a popular spot to sit and look out over the North Sea.
Walberswick Beach
Photo: Oliver Dixon via Geograph.org.uk
Walberswick Beach is a wide stretch of sand and shingle backed by low dunes, on the south side of the River Blyth mouth opposite Southwold. Behind it lie the reedbeds and marshes of Walberswick National Nature Reserve.
A seasonal rowing-boat ferry crosses the river to Southwold, or you can walk round by the Bailey Bridge upstream. Crabbing off the harbour and creek is a popular thing to do here, and two village car parks serve the beach, a short way along the coast from Dunwich Beach.
Covehithe Beach
Photo: Michael Garlick via Geograph.org.uk
Covehithe Beach lies below some of the fastest-eroding cliffs in Britain, between Lowestoft and Southwold. The soft sandy cliffs give way several metres a year, and the lane down to the shore now ends abruptly at the crumbling edge.
Bleached tree stumps and lumps of a fallen wartime pillbox lie on the sand. Just inland stand the ruins of St Andrew's Church, its tall flint tower kept company by a small thatched church built inside the ruins.
Dunwich Heath Beach
Photo: Oscar Taylor via Geograph.org.uk
Dunwich Heath Beach is a shingle shore lying below the open heathland of Dunwich Heath, a National Trust reserve. A row of former coastguard cottages above the beach holds a tearoom looking out to sea, with the purple heath rolling behind.
The RSPB reserve at Minsmere lies right next door. The beach and heath together make a quiet stretch of coast rich in birds and wildlife.
FAQs
What was lost to the sea at Dunwich in Suffolk?
A large medieval port was lost at Dunwich, once one of the biggest towns in England, most of it swept into the sea by storms and cliff erosion over the centuries. Much of the old town now lies drowned offshore, and the friary ruins of Greyfriars are the most substantial piece left on land.
Why is Bawdsey Beach in Suffolk historically important?
Bawdsey Beach matters because Bawdsey Manor, just behind it, was where Britain's first radar station was built from 1936 and the Chain Home early-warning system developed under Robert Watson-Watt. That work proved of huge importance a few years later in the war.
Which Suffolk beach has the Scallop sculpture?
Aldeburgh Beach has the Scallop, a large steel sculpture by Maggi Hambling put up on the shingle in 2003 in memory of the composer Benjamin Britten. Its top edge is pierced with a line from his opera Peter Grimes, and it is a popular, if debated, spot to sit and look out to sea.
How many beaches are on this Suffolk list?
There are six beaches on this Suffolk list. Two beaches originally listed for Suffolk actually sit across the county border in Essex, so they were removed rather than presented as Suffolk. This is an accurate six, all genuinely on the Suffolk coast.
Conclusion
Suffolk's coast is a lesson in a shore always on the move, and these six catch that mood. Dunwich fronts a great medieval port almost entirely lost to the sea, its friary ruins the last of the town left on land, while Covehithe crumbles several metres a year below its half-drowned church.
Bawdsey pairs a quiet shingle shore with the birthplace of radar, and the Scallop sets a steel shell on the stones at Aldeburgh in memory of Benjamin Britten. Walberswick brings crabbing and a rowing-boat ferry beside its nature reserve, and Dunwich Heath backs its shingle with purple heath next to the birds of Minsmere.
These are beaches for long walks, birdwatching and beachcombing rather than busy resort days. Watch the crumbling cliff edges at Covehithe, and let the reserves and lost history give the coast its character.
