How to Find Us
Padmaloka is situated in Surlingham, a village 7 miles East of Norwich.
Padmaloka Retreat Centre
Lesingham House, The Covey
Surlingham
Norwich, Norfolk
NR14 7AL
Arriving by car: see full details below. Padmaloka main entrance is Lesingham House, the first on the right on the lane called The Covey. The entrance to the Padmaloka car park is 100 yards before the right-hand turn into The Covey.
If you need to leave before the end of a retreat, or arrive late please contact Padmaloka beforehand.
Taxi from Norwich
Kestral Taxis 01603 666611 are friendly and reliable and offer a special rate of £10/11.
Book in advance and ask for Lesingham House. If coming by train, please ask for a car at least 5 minutes after your train is due, and ring Kestral again if your train is delayed, as they can no longer wait in the station car park. Please help them, as they help us a lot. Cabs from outside the station are more expensive (£16/17), and do not need to be booked in advance.
Padmaloka will co-ordinate and book taxis at the end of a retreat.
Local Bus from Norwich
Revised April 2011. Service A001 (Anglia Coaches) from Norwich to Surlingham departs from John Lewis department store (formally Bonds) on Ber Street (N.B. the bus stop has moved to the other side of John Lewis!). The bus stop is the other side of the city from the rail station – allow 15 minutes for uphill walk. The bus journey takes about 30 minutes. Ask the driver to let you off at Lesingham House. Variable charge from £2.80.
Mon – Fri 10.10, 12.10, 13.10, 14.45, 15.45, 16.45, 18.10
Note: there are no buses on Sundays or Bank holidays. For full timetable click here.
If you miss the last bus, the Kestral Taxis office is over the road from the bus stop.
Train to Norwich
Direct trains from London, Liverpool, Sheffield, Peterborough, etc., and good connections elsewhere. For national rail timetables Click here.
It is sometimes significantly cheaper to book in advance, and sometimes cheaper to get separate tickets, with a break at Peterborough!
From the train station, either a 15 minute walk uphill to John Lewis, on Ber Street, to catch a local A001 bus, or take a taxi.
Coach
Service from London to Norwich Coach Station. 3 hours & £5 upwards. Book on National Express or ring 08705 80 80 80
Then take a local bus A001 from Ber Street, outside John Lewis (5 minutes walk), or take a taxi (see above).
Air
The nearest airports are Stansted Airport and Norwich Airport.
Airlines (for Norwich): Easyjet, Ryanair and Flybe.
Destinations from Norwich include Aberdeen, Amsterdam (with many connections), Croatia, Edinburgh, Exeter, Geneva, Ibiza, Jersey, Lake Garda, Majorca, Malta, and Manchester.
From Norwich Airport we suggest a taxi to Padmaloka (Kestral Taxis £16), or a local bus into Norwich and another bus out.
Gatwick, Heathrow & Luton airports are also within reach of Norwich by coach and train (change in London).
By Car
Padmaloka is off the A146 Norwich to Lowestoft road.
Follow the signs to Kirby Bedon, Bramerton and Surlingham.
More details: coming south-east from Norwich, ¼ mile after the A47 bypass, turn sharp left, through Kirby Bedon, along the Bramerton Road for about 3 miles.
At the beginning of Bramerton, at the white gates where road takes sharp right bend, turn left to Surlingham.
Follow the main road through to Surlingham for another 2 miles (increasingly narrow and wiggly).
At the bottom of the hill, after a few houses and the turning to the church, follow the (main) road as it takes a sharp right bend, and then left, up Walnut Hill into the main village.
You pass the school on your right, and the village pond on your left.
After 200 yards, at the sharp right bend (towards Rockland St Mary), turn left into The Green. 100 yards before the end of this straight road is the gate into the Padmaloka car park: please park here. For the main gate, go to the end, and turn sharp right into The Covey, – there’s a small sign to Ted Ellis Nature Reserve. Padmaloka is immediately the first gate on the right – marked Lesingham House. [There are no street lights, but its easier than it sounds!]
Some sat-navs and internet route planners suggest a different route to Bramerton & Surlingham, using very narrow lanes. Our directions use better roads!
