Residents have been displaced from one of England’s most charming villages, now dominated by holidaymakers.

Throughout the summer, Blakeney in North Norfolk experiences exceptional congestion. The Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty attracts substantial visitor numbers, drawn to its delightful stone cottages, a hotel recognised as the country’s best, and impressive seal colonies.

Yet winter paints a starkly different picture. Visitor levels plummet and many erstwhile fishing cottages stand empty.

The village’s charm was instantly evident to me during my late November visit. Just steps from the celebrated Manor Coastal Hotel and Inn flows the River Glaven, winding its way through the National Nature Reserve.

Blakeney Point has become renowned for its seal populations, with Beans Boat offering guided trips throughout the year. During the 19th century, this coastal community was positioned much nearer to the waterfront than today. Over the past hundred years, the estuary has progressively silted up, coinciding with the decline of the local fishing trade, now allowing only the smallest craft to reach the quay.

What once served as a fishing village has evolved into a tourist hotspot. During summer, Blakeney’s two pubs and three hotels run at maximum capacity.

“I love living here, but unfortunately, during the summer, it is just a full, full village. There’s far too much traffic going through such a small place, but that does mean I’m busy with my work, which is fantastic. The cottages and second homes are so quiet during the winter. It’s sad to know that there are so many people who’d love to live in those houses, but unfortunately, they can’t live in them permanently. They’re sitting there empty during the winter, and then it’s so, so busy during the summer. It’s a tricky one for me, as working in the tourist industry, I need it to be busy. But to see the small village that’s very quaint and dainty overrun with people, yeah, it’s a lot,” Tore explained.

Tore is among the handful of Blakeney natives born and raised in the village who haven’t come into property through inheritance yet still call it home. She made her way back to the area ten years ago after an unexpected romance in Libya.

Her connection to the area qualified her to register with the Blakeney Neighbourhood Housing Society, which caters to the 400-home community. The Society’s website explains its purpose: “The price of housing has risen steeply as many properties have become second homes or places to retire to, and many local people can no longer afford to buy or rent them. The purpose of the Blakeney Neighbourhood Housing Society, founded 1946, is to provide affordable housing for local people. It owns 39 houses and cottages in Blakeney or neighbouring villages and they are all let at affordable rents to tenants with a local birth tie.”

Five decades ago, a remarkable proportion of UK residents were in Tore’s position, with 30% of the entire population living in some type of social housing. Yet, following years of Right to Buy schemes and slow building rates, that number has dropped by half.

“I started working at the hotel at 14, and lived in the area my whole life. Working in a hotel and in the trade that it is all around here, the chances of buying a house would just be impossible. I was lucky enough to be signed up to Blakeney Housing Society in 2017, and then moved in in 2019,” Tore explained. “It has changed my whole life. It means I can be around my whole family. A lot of my friends who were born and bred here couldn’t live here due to housing problems, so they moved away to somewhere cheaper. But it is the perfect place to live. There’s community spirit, it’s a very olde-worlde place. I’d never want to be anywhere else but here.”

The stark figures paint a grim picture of the local housing market. As of November 2025, properties in Blakeney fetch an average selling price of £714,000, according to OnTheMarket – three times the national average of £273,000.

Data from the Office for National Statistics reveals that the median average wage in North Norfolk is just £571 per week.

Thanks to her rent-controlled agreement, Tore pays a mere £478 monthly for her family home.

In response to the significant gap between average earnings and property prices, the district council took decisive action earlier this year. They imposed an additional 100% premium on Council Tax bills for owners, leaseholders, or tenants of second homes in North Norfolk, effectively doubling the tax for these additional properties.

Blakeney Parish Council chairman Rosemary Thew stressed that the policy is not designed to discourage tourists, as tourism is a “big part of the village economy”. However, she conceded that the high number of second and holiday homes in the area is a major issue.

“The volume of second homes is very high, around half. It’s pushing prices up quite considerably. It means that, as far as locals are concerned, they can’t afford to live here. It’s a lovely place to live but you’ve got people [taking up dwellings] who are not key workers. A lot are retired people or second home owners. In winter time, it’s [the impact] particularly marked. The streets are jet black because there are no lights on in houses,” she told Mail Online.