Ely is 16 miles from Cambridge where you can punt on the river and visit the colleges and 12 miles from Newmarket, the home of horse flat racing, the National Stud and National Horse Racing Museum. Fast trains go to London every hour (1hr 20mins) and, as the last train leaves Kings Cross at 11.15pm you can attend a theatre or concert.

The marvellous honey colour stone town of Stamford to the West and the coastal towns of Aldeburgh with Snape Maltings and Southwold to the East are within easy reach.

East Anglia has many buildings of historic interest open to the public. The National Trust maintains Blickling Hall with its fabric collection, and the fine houses of Ickworth (Bury St. Edmunds), Wimpole Hall and Anglesey Abbey (Cambridge).

There is a strong tradition of regional theatres - The Arts Theatre (Cambridge), The Theatre Royal (Bury St. Edmunds) and the Wolsey Theatre (Ipswich). During the summer in Cambridge plays are performed in the college gardens.