Ten things that make the new Broads National Park special

Hickling Broad in Norfolk is now part of the Broads National Park. Credit: Carla Mobbs

The Norfolk and Suffolk Broads will be now be known as the Broads National Park following a landmark decision by the Broads Authority to re-brand the area of waterways.

The Broads were created when man-made medieval peat diggings became flooded.

  • The Broads National Park is the UK's largest protected wetland covering an area of 303 square kilometres or 117 square miles.

  • All that water in one of the driest parts of the British Isles.

  • The broads are shallow lakes and not naturally occurring. They were formed when peat was dug out for fuel in medieval times. As water levels rose over the years, they became flooded and were abandoned in the 14th century.

Surlingham Church Marsh, Surlingham Broad in Norfolk. Credit: Blair Luther-Veitch

  • It is the only National Park that has a city as the River Wensum flows through Norwich.

  • There are more than 125 miles (200km) of navigable waterways and it's Britain's third largest inland waterway.

  • There are nearly 200 miles (320 km) of public footpaths.

Barton Broad during the chilly winter of 2013. Credit: Jamie Hanger

  • There are seven rivers in the Broads system - the Ant, Bure, Chet, Thurne, Waveney, Wensum and Yare.

  • There are 63 broads and the three largest broads are Hickling, Barton and Oulton.

  • The Norfolk & Suffolk Broads joined the National Park family in 1989.

  • In 1878 you could hire sail boats from John Loynes and Harry Blake with the arrival of rail travel opening up the area for tourism.

The Broads area is important for nature conservation and one of Europe's finest wetlands. Credit: Andy Trigg
The northern part of the Broads National Park. Credit: Broads Authority
The southern part of the Broads National Park. Credit: Broads Authority