Cley next the Sea is a village and civil parish on the River Glaven in English county of Norfolk, 4 mi (6 km) north-west of Holt and east of Blakeney. The main A149 coast road runs through the centre of the village, causing congestion in the summer months due to the tight, narrow streets. It lies within the Norfolk Coast AONB and the North Norfolk Heritage Coast.

The River Glaven in the eastern English county of Norfolk is 10.5 mi (16.9 km) long and flows through picturesque North Norfolk countryside to the North Sea. Rising from a tiny headwater in Bodham the river starts 2+1⁄2 miles before Selbrigg Pond where three small streams combine. The scenic value of the Glaven valley is important to the tourist industry in North Norfolk. The river is one of over 200 chalk rivers in the world and one of 160 in the UK.