Ipswich

Ipswich is a town of many parts and it’s the largest town in Suffolk as well as being the county town. The Central Quarter is the historic heart of the town where the main shopping areas are, and the Waterfront is the reinvented harbour where bars, cafés and restaurants have taken over from the commercial buildings of the original port. It’s got a close working relationship with the hard-working container port at Felixstowe at the mouth of the River Orwell and so it’s got an industrial landscape on the one hand and the totally tranquil landscape of the Suffolk Coast & Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty on the other. A new home here has the best of both these worlds.

Living in Ipswich

Ipswich is on a key commercial and commuting route between Greater London, Chelmsford and Colchester, and Felixstowe, via the A12 and the A14. Colchester is 18 miles away and Chelmsford is 40 miles away. The A14 bypasses the town to the south before reaching Felixstowe, 14 miles to the southeast. The A12 continues north, before joining the east coast at Lowestoft. Greater Anglia Trains operate services from Ipswich to London, Cambridge, Norwich and Peterborough. The average journey time to London by train is an hour and a quarter. It’s just one hour from Stansted Airport, and Stena Line ferries from Harwich link with Holland.

On the go

Good town facilities are key to today’s busy lives. Ipswich has got several shopping centres and retail parks to make life easy. The old town’s High Street is a great mix of independent shops, boutiques and high street names, for when you’ve got time to browse. The town’s supermarkets are in easy-to-reach locations for when you need to get the weekly shop done in one place, including two superstores, Asda and Tesco, on the outskirts.

On the weekend

Contemporary Ipswich has its focus at the Waterside. There’s a real buzz and it’s a great place for an evening out, for a stroll and a drink or a meal in one of the many restaurants. Cineworld Ipswich and Empire Cinemas bring you all the blockbusters, Alexandra Park, Holywells Park and Christchurch Park bring you green space to stretch your legs – there are many more, and if you want to take a day out in the Suffolk Heath & Coasts Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, start at the gorgeous market town of Woodbridge on the River Deben and set off for the countryside and the coast.