Top Deck
@
The Cabin

The Cabin in 1904

ABOUT

Ideal Suburban Staging Point for your Suffolk and South Cambridgeshire Getaway

Welcome to Top Deck @ The Cabin, your perfect location for a couples getaway in the historic market town of Bury St Edmunds, with its plethora of independent shops and restaurants, and with the charming county of Suffolk on your doorstep. Nestled in a quiet, secluded location, our holiday flat offers a unique blend of peace and comfort within a stones throw of a bustling market town, in a county that is often untouched by the passage of time. From here, you can strike out to historic towns and cities, mediaeval villages, ancient buildings, seaside towns, unspoilt beaches, and the rolling fields and woods of England's green and pleasant land.

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OVERVIEW

About The Top Deck and the Surrounding Area

Top Deck & The Cabin

Grand and Quirky Edwardian Home

The Top Deck is a recently renovated converted loft space, in a grand Edwardian house. It has two large bedrooms, with king-size beds and copious storage space, a modern bathroom and shower, and a sitting room with attached kitchenette, with a total floor space of 711 sq ft (66 sq m).

Built in 1904, in a style redolent of the sailing ships of the 19th Century, The Cabin once occupied three-quarters of an acre of land on the corner of Fornham Road and Norfolk Road. The house was built by a wealthy lady for her nephew, who was an officer in the Royal Navy, which accounts for the nautical theme and the name of the house. Accordingly, the house was built along the cardinal lines of the compass (the front of the house is aligned along a true north-south line)

During the 1920s, the roof space was converted into accommodation for the three servants that we know lived with the owners and their family. Since then it has been a guest house and a single family dwelling. The current owners, who now live in the main part of the house completed a major renovation to the entire second floor, and access to it, in 2024, making the Top Deck.

Bury St Edmunds

A Jewel in the Crown of Suffolk

In the autumn of the year 869 the Danes invaded East Anglia. King Edmund fought against them but during the conquest was slain, the anniversary of his death being commemorated on 20 November. A shrine to St Edmund was created by the small religious household who guarded his relics. St Edmund became the original patron saint of all England, only to be supplanted by St George in 1348.

The abbey was once once of the largest and grandest of all the Benedictine monasteries, before it fell to the ravages of the Reformation. A visitor, who saw it just before it was torn down by Henry VII, described it thus:

A city more neatly seated the Sun never saw, so curiously doth it hang upon a gentle descent, with a little river on the east side; nor a monastery more noble, whether one considers the endowments, largeness or unparalleled magnificence. One might think even the monastery alone a city: so many gates it has … so many towers, and a church, than which nothing can be more magnificent; as appendages to which, there are three more, of admirable beauty and workmanship, in the same churchyard.”

Bury St Edmunds is now a bustling market town, with markets twice a week and a large selection of independent and boutique shops and restaurants in its historic centre.

Suffolk

Charming Villages and Countryside in the heart of England's bread basket

Outside the town of Bury St Edmunds, one of England's prettiest and most untouched counties awaits you, with historic buildings (more listed buildings than almost any other county), open countryside, clean unspoilt beaches, ancient woodlands, and cosy country pubs.

Suffolk is home to three famous breweries, crafting traditional Suffolk and English ales: Greene King in Bury St Edmunds, Nethergate in Long Melford, and Adnams in Southwold. Both Adnams and Nethergate also have brewery shops in Bury St Edmunds.

Within just a few miles is the National Trust property Ickworth House. Also nearby are West Stow Anglo-Saxon village and the ancient bluebell Bradfield Woods.

The market town of Lavenham is considered to be the best-preserved mediæval town in England. You’ll find the Crooked House, The Swan Hotel, The National Trust Guildhall, and the Little Hall Museum, as well as scores of homes and businesses set in historic buildings.

The village of Kersey is a typical charming Suffolk village, with beautiful walks around and a pub (The Bell Inn) that is cosy, welcoming, and does fabulous Sunday lunches. Nearby is the English Heritage 13th century Lindsey St James’s chapel.

The seaside town of Southwold is one of the best-preserved and most charming examples of a Victorian seaside resort, with a pier, a sandy beach, shops, restaurants, pubs, a lighthouse.

Aldeburgh, is another charming Suffolk seaside town, with a long promenade and plenty of seafood shacks right on the beach where you can buy the best fresh and smoked fish, straight from the boats!

Dunwich Beach, is a long, unspoilt, and relatively unknown sand and shingle beach, perfect for days out in the sun. There is ample parking and a nice café, with public toilets.

Top Deck @ The Cabin