Walsingham - Abbey, Priory & Centre

Navigating The Route

This is a walking Treasure Hunt around Walsingham Abbey, Priory & Centre, with Explorers helping Cortez locate and save priceless artefacts hidden on a small island off Norfolk's north coast during the Dissolution of the Monasteries, before rising sea levels make them disappear.

The quest covers 1.5 miles and should take around 1.5 hours to complete. You'll start at the car park, explore the oldest parts of the village, investigate narrow roads and historic corners, pass monastic remains and have the option to pause at shrine sites along the way.

This Trail is not suitable for wheelchairs or pushchairs. The ground underfoot is good throughout and there is a gentle hill, but many roads are narrow, few have pavements, and there are sections with no pavements at all.

Take particular care on the narrow roads and use single file on the stretch with no pavements. Keep Mini Explorers close while you track down Cortez's missing treasure.

Getting There

By car: Start the quest at the car park (NR22 6DH). We recommend setting up base camp at Old Mill pay and display car park (NR22 6DH).

By public transport: Make your way to the car park in Walsingham (NR22 6DH) to begin the adventure.

Need the Loo?

Public toilets can be found after Clue 08, and again just along after Clue 21, albeit on the other side of the road.

Bring Your Furry Sidekicks

Four-legged Explorers are welcome to join the treasure hunt 🐾

The route includes narrow village roads, roads with few or no pavements, and a stretch where walkers are advised to go in single file, so keep dogs close throughout and take extra care around traffic.

Food & Drink Stops

Treasure-saving is thirsty work. Tea and snack shops can be found throughout, subject to seasonal opening hours, and the village store is up on the left at No. 25 if you need refreshments.

Want to Make a Day of It?

Walsingham Abbey, Priory & Centre

Walsingham is a truly beautiful village, a major religious pilgrimage site and a place to explore monastic ruins once the treasure trail has been tackled. By the 15th century it was second to Canterbury as a place of pilgrimage in England. Today around 250,000 pilgrims visit each year, with a national pilgrimage each late May Bank Holiday, when around 2,000 pilgrims process through the village into the Abbey grounds for an open mass.

The Anglican Shrine

Explorers can take time out from the quest to visit the Anglican Shrine, with the main entrance further along on the right-hand side. This still and tranquil area has no clues to solve, so it makes a peaceful pause in the adventure. Our Lady of Walsingham is a title used for Mary, the mother of Jesus, and the belief is that Mary appeared in a vision in 1061 to Lady Richeldis, the owner of Walsingham manor; the original shrine was a simple wooden structure.

St Mary's Friary

The route gives a view over the privately owned remains of St Mary's Friary, founded in 1347. You'll also be able to see it from the other side later in the quest, making it a neat extra slice of Walsingham history while Cortez's artefacts are still being tracked.

The Slipper Chapel

Optional after-trail detour: the Roman Catholic shrine, The Slipper Chapel, is approximately 1 mile south of Walsingham in Houghton St Giles. It was re-established as a shrine in 1897 and became the Roman Catholic National Shrine of Our Lady in 1934.