Great Yarmouth has been welcoming visitors for many decades and every summer millions of holidaymakers and day trippers descend on the Norfolk resort for fun and sunshine. While the resort has all the traditional elements for a classic seaside holiday, there are some surprising facts and attractions that give Yarmouth extra appeal. The much photographed bright lights and bravado of the Golden Mile may well overshadow the town’s fascinating humble beginnings and gritty history. Did you know that Great Yarmouth originated as a fishing settlement and went onto become the leading herring fishing port in the world or that Admiral Lord Nelson was a freeman of the town? Discover the hidden depths of Yarmouth at the award winning museums, many situated in the historic South Quay. The town's rich maritime heritage is celebrated every year with the Great Yarmouth Maritime Festival, a spectacular weekend featuring tall ships and other visiting vessels, live shanty music, lifeboat demonstrations, craft marquees, free heritage walks and much more. Even the much-loved family attractions have charming secrets. The Pleasure Beach, with its action-packed rides is also home to the wooden roller coaster, one of the world’s oldest historic amusement structures. Just off the seafront you can find the unassuming Hippodrome Circus, Britain’s only surviving complete circus building, one of only three circuses in the World to have a sunken ring, allowing spectacular water shows. Once referred to by the great Charles Dickens, who lived for a time in Great Yarmouth, as “Upon the whole the finest place in the universe” and also home to the world’s first fish finger, there is more to this seaside resort than first meets the eye. For more information on holidaying in Greater Yarmouth visit http://www.great-yarmouth.co.uk or contact the tourism office on 01493 846346.