Benacre, Suffolk

The Sunrise Coast is a stretch of tourist coastline in the English county of Suffolk. The area includes the seaside resort towns of Lowestoft and Southwold and the inland Broads towns of Beccles and Bungay within the Waveney district. The coast was awarded three Blue Flag beaches in 2011 - two at Lowestoft and one in Southwold. A further beach at Southwold and one at Kessingland were awarded Keep Britain Tidy Quality Coast Awards in recognition of their overall quality.

Benacre Broad is an isolated coastal lagoon on the North Sea coast of the English county of Suffolk. It is located in the parish of Benacre around 1⁄2 mile (0.80 km) north of the village of Covehithe. It is about 2 miles (3.2 km) east of Wrentham, 4+1⁄2 miles (7.2 km) north of Southwold and 6+1⁄4 miles (10 km) south of Lowestoft. The broad is part of Benacre National Nature Reserve, a reserve managed by Natural England. It forms part of the area of the Pakefield to Easton Bavents Site of Special Scientific Interest and the Benacre and Easton Barents Lagoons Special Area of Conservation. The main broad area has traditionally been made up of a number of smaller bodies of water and in 1996 a number of small pools were created to combat the impact of coastal erosion and increasing water salinity on habitats. At a 1997 survey, had an area of 5 hectares (12 acres). At the end of November 2011 a high tidal surge broke through the narrow beach separating the Broad from the sea, inundating the area and increasing the salinity markedly. A survey in February 2012 found that the area of the broad had increased to 43 hectares (110 acres) and that the salinity of the water had increased to 22 parts per thousand. The water depth had also increased, although some separate pools within the lagoon area had remained as fresh water. In 2020, the beach was again breached and currently (December 2020) a channel allows salt water to enter the broad at high tide, and the dresh water to drain from the broad as the tide drops.

Africa Alive! Zoological Reserve, formerly known as Africa Alive! and Suffolk Wildlife Park, is a zoo located in Kessingland, Suffolk, UK. It is situated off the A12 at Kessingland 2 miles (3 km) south of Lowestoft. Africa Alive! Zoological Reserve is part of the Zoological Society of East Anglia, a registered charity, and a member of the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA), the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA), and the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA).

Henstead is a village in the civil parish of Henstead with Hulver Street, in the East Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England. It has a church called Church of St Mary which is a Grade I listed building. It has very few housing areas, and is a rural area. It is situated near Rushmere and Kessingland and the A12. The parish has a population of 408, , which contains many very similar sized civil parishes. The Private preparatory school, The Old School Henstead, is also located in the village. . The church has a Norman doorway, and an embattled tower. The village stands three miles from the coast, and five miles south-east of Beccles railway station.

Rushmere is a village and civil parish in the East Suffolk district of the English county of Suffolk. The village is around 5 miles (8.0 km) south-west of Lowestoft and 5+1⁄2 miles (8.9 km) south-east of Beccles. Neighbouring parishes include Gisleham, Henstead with Hulver Street and Mutford. The Hundred River forms the southern boundary of the parish. Settlement within the parish is dispersed without a village centre. The population was estimated at 60 in 2016. The majority of the land in the parish is agricultural with the name meaning a rushy enclosure or lake.

Kessingland is a village and civil parish in the East Suffolk district of the English county of Suffolk. It is located around 4 miles (6 km) south of Lowestoft on the east coast of the United Kingdom. It is of interest to archaeologists as Palaeolithic and Neolithic implements have been found here; the remains of an ancient forest lie buried on the seabed. The parish, which had a population of 4,327 at the 2011 United Kingdom census, borders the parishes of Gisleham, Henstead with Hulver Street and Benacre. It extends from the edge of the Pontins holiday park south of Pakefield in the north to the Hundred River which marks the southern border of the parish. The main A12 road cuts through the parish, bypassing the main built up area of the village.

Henstead with Hulver Street is a civil parish in the East Suffolk district of the English county of Suffolk. It is around 5 miles (8.0 km) south-west of Lowestoft, 5 miles (8.0 km) south-east of Beccles and 6 miles (9.7 km) north of the coastal town of Southwold. The parish has an area of 8 square kilometres (3.1 sq mi) and consists of the villages of Henstead, where the parish church is located, and Hulver Street. It borders the parishes of Benacre, Ellough, Gisleham, Kessingland, Mutford, Rushmere, Sotterley and Wrentham. At the 2011 United Kingdom census the parish had a population of 408, having increased from a mid 2005 estimate of 320. A 2016 estimate suggested that the population had risen slightly to 416. The main A12 road cuts across the eastern border of the parish, with the B1127 Beccles to Benacre road running through Hulver Street and past Henstead church. The Hundred River defines much of the northern border of the parish, with the western boundary bordered by the Sotterley estate.

Gisleham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Suffolk. It is on the edge of Lowestoft, around 5 miles (8.0 km) south-west of the town centre. The parish is in the East Suffolk district, situated between Carlton Colville and Kessingland. The parish had a population of 778 at the 2011 United Kingdom census. The main A12 road cuts through the eastern portion of the parish close to the North Sea coast. The coastal section of the parish to the east of the main road has developed as a series of holiday parks, including a large Pontins park. The parish extends south as far as the Hundred River where it borders Henstead with Hulver Street and Rushmere parishes.

Lothingland was a rural district in East Suffolk, England, named after the ancient half-hundred of Lothingland which was merged with Mutford half-hundred in 1763 to form Mutford and Lothingland. The rural district was formed in 1934 by the merger of most of Mutford and Lothingland Rural District along with part of Blything Rural District, both of which were being abolished. It covered a coastal area between Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft. The district was administered from offices in Rectory Road, Lowestoft. The site is now occupied by Kingswear Court. The district was abolished in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, and split between the new districts of the borough of Great Yarmouth (in Norfolk) and Waveney (in Suffolk).

Mutford is a village and civil parish in the East Suffolk District of the English county of Suffolk. The village is 5 miles (8.0 km) south-west of Lowestoft and 4 miles (6.4 km) south-east of Beccles in a rural area. The parish borders Barnby, Carlton Colville, Gisleham, Rushmere, Henstead with Hulver Street, Ellough and North Cove. The village gave its name to the Half Hundred of Mutford which is named in the Domesday Book. The parish had a population of 471 at the 2011 United Kingdom census. The A146 Beccles to Lowestoft road runs to north of the parish, cutting through the north-western corner. The Hundred River marks the southern boundary with Henstead with Hulver Street.

Pakefield Lighthouse is a decommissioned 19th century lighthouse which was built near Pakefield a suburb of Lowestoft in Suffolk. The lighthouse tower has been used for a variety of maritime, civilian and military roles, and is currently used as a Coastwatch lookout post.

Barnby is a village and civil parish in the East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England. The village is 5 miles (8.0 km) west of Lowestoft and 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Beccles in the north of the county. It is effectively merged with the village of North Cove which constitutes a separate parish. At the 2011 United Kingdom census the population of the parish was 479. This had fallen slightly from a mid-2005 estimated population of 510. Other than North Cove, it is bordered by Carlton Colville to the east, Mutford to the south, and to the north the Norfolk parish of Burgh St Peter across the river. The northern border of the parish is marked by the River Waveney and the northern area lies within The Broads National Park. The village lies on the A146 road running between Norwich and Lowestoft. This bypasses the built up area on a series of bends known locally as the "Barnby bends". The Ipswich to Lowestoft railway line runs through the north of the parish, with the nearest stations at Oulton Broad South and Beccles.