Thorpeness Meare & House in the Clouds

Thorpeness is a one-off: a fantasy holiday village built in the 1910s, complete with a boating lake (the Meare) and the famous House in the Clouds, a disguised water tower on stilts that is irresistible from the air. That novelty is exactly why it earns a place - there is nothing else like it on the Suffolk coast. Fly, though, with tact. The village and much of the land belong to the Ogilvie estate, and the Meare is packed with rowing boats and families through the summer, so take off from the quieter shingle beach rather than over the lake or crowds, and don't hover close to the House in the Clouds, which is a private holiday let with guests inside. Composed from a respectful distance and height, the tower against the flat coast and the geometry of the Meare are superb subjects. There is no controlled airspace nearby - Wattisham is nearly 30km inland - and Aldeburgh lies about 5km south, so this is a distinct spot. The beach shingle gives clean, legal TOAL. Go in the shoulder seasons or early morning when the Meare is still and the crowds thin; low, raking light makes the water tower pop against the sky.