Fancy a golf and gardens break in Suffolk?

A Suffolk hotel and golf club and a 500-year-old grade I listed Hall and Gardens have teamed up to launch a new green-fingered golf break package to the UK market.

Thorpeness Hotel and Golf Club, in the holiday village of Thorpeness on Suffolk’s Heritage Coast, and Helmingham Hall and Gardens – ancestral home of the Tollemache family near Stowmarket – have joined together to launch a new “Golf and Gardens” golf break package targeting UK golfers.

Thorpeness Hotel and Golf Club is part of the TA Hotel Collection, a group of five distinctive independent Suffolk Hotels, and one of the leading golf destinations in the county.

Bruno Mollier, manager Thorpeness Hotel and Golf Club, said: “The golf breaks market is one of the most competitive in the UK tourism industry and so many quality hotels now have golf facilities. We believe that to stand out you need to offer your guests added value and authentic experiences that are distinct to your destination.

“This is why we have approached Helmingham Hall – one of Suffolk’s leading attractions – to offer tourists a package combining golf and a tour around its beautiful rose gardens.”

Thorpeness ia a superb James Braid heathland layout close to the Suffolk coast and is always in top condition throughout the year.

With more than 2500 golf courses in the UK, Thorpeness Hotel and Golf Club says it recognises the need to offer tourists the opportunity to experience more than just the course and the clubhouse bar.

“Suffolk is a county of rare and outstanding natural beauty, with picture postcard seaside villages and distinctive food, drink and visitor attractions. We saw an opportunity to work with Helmingham Hall and Gardens and other Suffolk attractions to tell the story of this county as well as promoting its golf courses,” added  Mollier.

Helmingham Hall’s gardens date back to the Anglo Saxon period and evidence shows the Tollemache family moved there in 1510 and cultivated its gardens ever since.

The present day Helmingham gardens are surrounded by a moat and housed within a mellow red brick wall. They are inspired by the Tudor period with old scented rose shrub bushes laid out in a pattern combining the square, a circle and the cross.

Golf and Gardens Golf Break:

This two night break is available on any two consecutive nights between Monday and Thursday until 13th September 2012.

The price is inclusive of breakfast and dinner each day, 36 holes of golf, entry to the gardens and a guide book. Sharing a standard room £228 per person; Sharing a superior room £238 per person.

For parties of eight or morea personal tour of the gardens with Lady Tollemach can be booked. This is subject to availability and carries a supplement of £10 per person.

*For more information, visit: www.thorpeness.co.uk and www.helmingham.com