Monday 6th June 2016
So Todays post revolves around my short but sweet trip to Aldeburgh. The journey should have taken about 30 Mins on quiet midday roads, however not been able to use my satnav meant I got lost, not once, not twice but four times!! 2 hours later and after a very scenic drive we finally arrived at 5pm!
If your wondering where the hell aldeburgh is, heres a handy goole map reference:
We relaxed on the very Pebble-y beach for a while as my friend/carer/PA/sister from another mister April decided to try and swim in the sea. After a while and we had all had enough and headed off for some fish and chips.
Now down to the Accessibility........
There is disabled parking right in front of the beach near the giant seashell. The parking isn't free but blue badge holders can get double the time you pay for. it was £1 an hour (so blue badge = 2 hours for £1)
If you book ahead of time you can use an all terrain wheelchair, it isn't self propelled so would need use of a glamorous assistant to push (its located in a locked hut right next to the disabled parking bays, you can get the key from tourist information)
Aldeburgh Tourist Information Centre
48 High
Street, Aldeburgh, Suffolk IP15 5AB
Opening hours:
Monday to Saturday: 10am - 3pm
Sunday: 12 noon - 4pm
it looks something like this:
The beach itself is very uneven with more pebbles than sand, the all terrain wheelchair would get over the majority of it however there was a huge hill made purely of pebbles that was steep going up and coming down. I hereby name this pebble mountain! I sincerely discourage anyone from trying to push the all terrain wheelchair up and over this as the way down is too steep, however further along near the fishing huts there is a way down to the sea without this mini mountain! Wobbling was hard going even with husband half holding me up/half carrying me, a walking stick and knee braces. once I was down at the water it was lovely, I had a blanket and was able to sit on that propped up by the husband and watch the waves rolling in whilst we took turns at having a paddle and watching ted play with the waves,
The shops in Aldeburgh are mostly in old buildings and in my experience weren't very accessible. we tried the smaller of the two fish and chip shows and this had parking right outside and a small ledge to sit on whilst I waited for my order. I wouldn't recommend it during peak times as there wasn't much room to manoeuvre, a self propelled chair would fit through the doorway but a power chair would struggle. We went on a weekday (Monday) and it was quiet and the people serving us were prompt and polite. It was easy to find parking and as I still struggle to reverse park my 4x4 (the tank) a courteous driver reversed back in the bay to give me some more room to pull in (am I the only one that gives them a big thumbs up? I know i'm sad)
Aldeburgh would also be an ideal location for those with sensory overload who would like to visit the beach but can't stand the noises and lights from amusement arcades.
For those with specific dietary requirements- Heading back towards the A12 south there was a small Tesco's with disabled parking, nearby disabled toilets and a small free from section including gluten, dairy and wheat free foods, and a "world food" section that included some bottled green tea with honey that was amazing. I stopped here to top up on snacks to boost my almost non existent energy and caffeine that wouldn't send me into Supraventricular tachycardia!
As for toilet facilities nearer the beach, there are three public toilets near the sea front with disabled facilities.
I didn't get to see a huge amount of Aldeburgh owing to the exhausting drive and time of our arrival (oops) but I would like to come back and really have a proper look around, particularly at the old theatre and cinema, maybe that can be a future post.
In short it really seems like Aldeburgh council has gone out of its way to make their beach and town as disabled friendly as possible, which is always reassuring to see, if small towns like Aldeburgh can manage it there's hope for us all! Oh and Aldeburgh council- if by some miracle this post gets back to you please do something about pebble mountain!
Thanks,
Laura
:)
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