Gorleston-on-Sea Beach

Gorleston-on-Sea sits just south of Great Yarmouth and offers a broad, gently shelving sandy beach backed by a tidy Edwardian promenade and a pair of harbour piers where the river Yare meets the sea. For drone pilots it is an easy, open launch: the old North Denes heliport up the coast has long closed, there is no active flight restriction zone here, and Norwich Airport lies about twenty-five kilometres to the north-west. You can take off from the public beach and work the coastline, the model yacht pond, the low cliffs at the southern end, or the dramatic harbour mouth where ships pass close inshore - though keep a respectful distance from that shipping and from the pier heads. The beach is patrolled by the RNLI and gets genuinely busy on warm weekends, so an off-season or early-morning slot is far more comfortable and keeps you clear of bathers. Light is best in the morning when the sun rises over the sea and rakes across the sand. Watch for gusty onshore wind funnelling over the promenade, and rinse salt off the airframe afterwards. Parking is straightforward along Marine Parade. It is one of the more relaxed, legal coastal spots in east Norfolk.