The Gin Trap Inn

The Gin Trap Inn (also recorded as The Gin Trapp Inn) is a historic coaching inn and pub in the village of Ringstead, in the King's Lynn and West Norfolk district of Norfolk, England. According to its own account, it has been welcoming farmers, traders, fishermen and smugglers since 1668, making it one of the older hospitality establishments in the area. It sits a few miles from the North Norfolk coast, in countryside that the pub describes as the country's bread basket, and it positions itself as a village local that also draws visitors, families and dogs. The inn operates as a food-led pub with rooms. Its kitchen champions British and Norfolk produce, sourcing from the land, the shore and the sea, and its menus are rooted in the region while adding a creative touch. Alongside the bar and dining rooms, The Gin Trap offers 12 guest bedrooms, including three cottages, marketed as a relaxed base for exploring coastal village life. The pub also runs seasonal programmes such as Christmas dining, Christmas Day lunch and festive stays. The building's character comes from its long history as a coaching inn, which the pub combines with present-day comforts. Its own material invokes George Orwell's 1946 essay on the ideal pub, the 'Moon Under Water', to describe the atmosphere it aims for: regulars, conversation and a sense of place. The inn is a small independent hospitality business rather than part of a large chain, and it trades under the name The Gin Trap Inn, with the spelling 'Trapp' appearing in some records.

The Gin Trap Inn traces its origins to 1668, when it began operating as a coaching inn in the village of Ringstead in North Norfolk. Coaching inns of this period served travellers on the road network, and the pub's own history describes a clientele of farmers, traders, fishermen and smugglers — a mix that reflects Ringstead's position a few miles inland from the North Norfolk coast, where both legitimate trade and smuggling were part of coastal life. Over the following centuries the building continued as a village inn, accumulating the character of a 350-year-old coaching house. In the present day it operates as a food-led pub with rooms, combining the fabric and atmosphere of the old inn with modern comforts. Its kitchen has developed relationships with suppliers to maintain quality and focuses on British produce, particularly from Norfolk's farmland and coastline. The inn now offers 12 guest bedrooms, including three cottages, and runs seasonal dining programmes such as Christmas lunches and festive stays. In its own marketing it invokes George Orwell's 1946 Evening Standard essay about the ideal pub, the 'Moon Under Water', to frame its ambitions around atmosphere, regulars and conversation. The business is recorded in Wikidata as an inn in Ringstead, King's Lynn and West Norfolk, Norfolk, England, and trades under the name The Gin Trap Inn, with the variant spelling 'The Gin Trapp Inn' also in use.

• 1946

  George Orwell's Evening Standard essay on the ideal pub, the 'Moon Under Water', is published; the inn later cites it to describe its atmosphere.

• 1668

  The inn begins welcoming farmers, traders, fishermen and smugglers in Ringstead, North Norfolk.

• The inn operates as a food-led pub with 12 guest bedrooms, including three cottages, and seasonal Christmas dining and stays.

A historic 17th-century coaching inn and village pub with rooms, championing local Norfolk land-and-sea produce and a warm, characterful atmosphere.

• Dining at The Gin Trap

  An innovative menu championing British produce and local sourcing from land, shore and sea.

• Sunday roasts

  Highlighted on the pub's homepage as a reason to come in from the cold.

• Guest bedrooms

  12 characterful rooms including three cottages, named in The Sunday Times 100.

• Christmas dining and stays

  Christmas Day lunch, festive dining and Christmas stays.

1. 1The Gin Trap Inn official websitethegintrapinn.co.uk
2. 2About The Gin Trap Innthegintrapinn.co.uk
3. 3Wikidata: The Gin Trapp Innwikidata.org