Up the fun with some senior-friendly games and fun activities in West Norfolk, from bowling to bingo and everything in between.
From social opportunities and relationship building, hitting up local games, easy sports and other fun activities in your area can be a fantastic way to help an elderly friend or family member to get some exercise and mental stimulation – as well as getting out and having some fun, of course. There’s more to life than cups of tea, after all!
More energetic games and activities, such as skating or five-a-side, become less practical the older we become, but there are still plenty of ways to play, no matter how old you are. We don’t resign our seniors to sitting around and waiting on the next afternoon tea or bad soap opera.
Bowls, also known as lawn bowling, is a sport in which the objective is to roll biased balls so that they stop close to a smaller ball, called a ‘jack’. It is played on a bowling green, which can be flat or uneven, depending on the type of game being played.
For more social bowls why not try the outdoor bowling green in Hunstanton. Enjoy a game with picturesque seafront views on grass lanes located within the award-winning Esplanade Gardens. You don’t have to be a pro to play here, the equipment can be provided, so everyone can enjoy a game in the sunshine.
Based in the centre of King’s Lynn on St James Street, Ritz Bingo club is easy to find and with plenty going on in the town there is always something to do if you need a break from the action. Bingo is a fun game of chance in which players mark off numbers on cards as the numbers are randomly drawn, the winner is the first person to mark off all their numbers.
Sheringham Golf Club
Golf is the perfect game for older men and women to keep their fitness up without being too over-exerting. Playing golf engages your brain and improves strength and balance. It takes a lot of mental work and strategy to plot the course to hit a tiny ball into a cup that is hundreds of feet away. It also hones attention, memory and learning as you improve your skills.
Encouraging research shows that golfing offers strength and balance benefits for older players. In a study comparing golfers to non-golfers, the players came out ahead with better muscular strength, power, endurance, balance, and flexibility. Any form of exercise is shown to lift your spirits and relieve stress.
With some of the quietest trout lakes in the UK, Norfolk is studded with picturesque fisheries open to experienced and inexperienced anglers every day of the year. Narborough Trout Lakes houses one of these trout lakes, a haven for wildlife, well stocked with rainbow trout.
Narborough Fisheries is situated in its own private 26-acre site, with beautiful chalk stream water from the River Nar running through 5 fishing lakes, it is truly a fisherman’s heaven. There is a small tackle shop on-site with all the necessities, including hot drinks, ice creams and sweets.
Whether for mental stimulation, an afternoon (or longer) out of the usual surroundings, or for the sheer fun of it, games and activities like these are a fantastic way to spend time with senior friends and family whether you’re a carer or not. From classic pastimes like bingo and bowling to something a bit different like Adventure Golf, there’s so much to do in Norfolk to get out and about than just popping out for a cup of tea.