DAVID WICKERS goes in search of tradition and treasure in picturesque East Anglia

FEW COUNTIES in England can challenge Suffolk for gentle, nostalgic pleasures.

Barely two hours from the M25 are seasides from the pages of post-war family albums.

Rivers like the Deben, Stour, Alde and Blyth, all of which bite deeply into the countryside, have saved the shore from ribbon development.

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Once prosperous ports have taken early retirement, their waters too shallow for modern ships, and finger spits of land have created habitats far more inviting for birds than builders.

Inland, the story is the same.

Industry seems to have turned a blind eye to Suffolk, which means towns that grew rich in the Middle Ages on the backs of sheep have kept their looks instead of being razed to make room for modern commerce. Suffolk is no museum exhibit, however, but a lively, as well as lovely, county that richly rewards visitors.

TOWN
Ipswich is Suffolk's "capital" but Bury St Edmunds, with its classic Georgian architecture, carefully planned streets, cathedral and general prettiness, is a much more attractive prospect for leisure travellers. Top attraction is the crumpled bones of its ancient Benedictine abbey and gardens, impressively approached by the Abbey Gate.

COUNTRYSIDE
The most visited pocket of inland Suffolk is the Essex "border country" along the valley of the River Stour, immortalised on canvas by Constable. Flatford Mill, the Hay Wain cottage and other scenes of pastoral perfection along the Dedham Vale are little changed since he committed them to canvas.

At the upper end of the Stour Valley is Suffolk's other rural pleasure, the so-called "wool towns". These thrived between the 13th and 15th centuries, leaving an architectural legacy of half-timbered buildings and immense, cathedral-like churches, best seen in Lavenham, Long Melford and Sudbury.

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EXPLORE
Southwold, where the fragrance of malt from Adnams brewery shares the breeze with bracing North Sea air, is delightful, a place of Georgian listed buildings, Victorian terraces, open greens and old fashioned looks.

It has an award-winning pier, a lighthouse, great pubs, The Jill Freud Company's summer theatre, colourful beach huts that sell for a small fortune and Sir Winston Churchill's favourite hotel, the Swan.

Southwold's main rival for resort charm is Aldeburgh, traditionally handsome with its wonky roof lines, gable ends and brightly painted facades. It's a more energetic and artier town, its cultural highlight being the annual Benjamin Britten music festival (01728 687 100/www.aldeburgh.co.uk), which is staged in June at the nearby Snape Maltings.

Other attractions include model yachts on the boating pond, two sailing clubs, visits to the lifeboat, and excellent places to eat, ranging from two top chippies to The Lighthouse bistro (01728 453 377/ www.lighthouserestaurant.co.uk).

STAY:
The Angel Hotel (01284 714 000/ www.theangel.co.uk) in Bury St Edmunds offers doubles from £100, B&B. The 17th-century Swan Hotel (01502 722 186/www.adnams.co.uk), bang on the market square in Southwold, offers doubles from £135, B&B.

DON'T MISS:
Just outside Woodbridge is Sutton Hoo (01394 389 700/www.nationaltrust.org.uk), site of one of the most remarkable finds in British archaeology, a local Saxon king's burial ship full of treasures, East Anglia's answer to Tutankhamun.

There's an excellent interpretative centre as well as a show of treasures on permanent loan from the British Museum and an attractive place for lunch.

INFORMATION:
Visit Suffolk: www.visitsuffolk.com