The 10 best hotels in the Lake District, for lakeside views, spa breaks and Michelin-starred meals
Majestic fells, glittering lakes, craggy valleys and comely white-washed villages – you’d need a heart of stone not to be beguiled by the Lake District. With England’s highest mountain, longest lake and deepest waters, not surprisingly it’s the country’s second-most popular national park.
And it’s not just for adrenaline junkies. The area’s beauty can be enjoyed from lake cruises. There are grand houses with grand gardens, plus the homes of writers, poets and artists to explore (poet William Wordsworth, arguably, put the region on the map). What’s more, there is an astonishing food and drink scene, with 13 Michelin-starred restaurants, and numerous craft breweries and distilleries.
To match the variety of things to see and do, there’s a variety of places to stay: swanky hotels for the spa-lovers, restaurants-with-rooms for the foodies, country inns that welcome walkers, keenly priced B&Bs with brilliant breakfasts, town-centre pubs with buzzing atmospheres, and glorious one-offs with funky designs and a proud Lakeland character.
This is indulgence with a capital I. A modern country-house hotel, 10 minutes from Windermere’s lakeshore, it has expanded from the original Edwardian house at its core to offer a variety of rooms and suites across its 21 acres. These vary from the lavishly cossetting (bright colours, thick fabrics, plump cushions, plants and books; most with hot tubs) to apartment-sized, stand-alone chalets with floor-to-ceiling windows, and personal spas including sunken hot tubs. A separate six-bedroom ‘Lake House’, a mile away and wrapped in woodland and with an indoor pool as well as a lake, offers a more homely – though still grand – style.
Both the main hotel and Lake House have small spas: the former with a roof-top garden; the latter overlooking the lake. Service levels are very much ‘your wish is my command’ and there’s a choice of Michelin-starred dining at SOURCE or pan-Asian tapas – in fun-coloured surrounds – at the well-named, Spice.
Address: Crook Road, Windermere LA23 3NE
Read more: Lake District guide – where to eat, drink, walk and stay on the ultimate trip
This dog-friendly bistro-with-rooms, in converted farm buildings a 15-minute walk from pretty Grasmere, is both smart and fun. Its relaxed atmosphere is in no small part due to the fact it’s a family affair; kicked off by mum and dad, and now largely run by daughters Jess and Georgina and their husbands, all of whom have excellent knowledge of the area.
At its heart is the bistro (with Jess’s husband Will at the helm) with its tangy take on Lakeland food – slow-cooked Herdwick lamb with pea mash and ratatouille, for example – and in rustic surrounds of slate floors, exposed rafters and recycled timber tables. On warmer days, eat outdoors on the terraces with their views to the fells. Each of the five bedrooms offers a fell view, too. Sleek, minimalist rooms in pale greys and whites, with oak doors, wool fabrics and timber headboards, they’re carefully designed to make the most of the spaces. Compact bathrooms are bright and modern with decent showers; all you need after a day on the hills.
Address: Broadrayne Farm, Grasmere, Ambleside LA22 9RU
Read more: The best walks in the Lake District
This whitewashed 17th-century inn, tucked away from the mainstream crowds near quiet Loweswater, requires a little persistence to find – though plenty do. It has all you’d expect of a traditional Lakeland inn: low beams, flagstone floors, toasty fire and a series of little snugs. There’s smart and robust food on the menu – it’s important to leave room for the home-made fruit crumble – and their own-brew beers at the bar.
A long grassy terrace beside the beck at the rear looks up at the magnificent Melbreak fell, one of several walks that are possible from the front door. Many of the neat, country-fresh bedrooms (some in a separate building) share the same view. With black-painted beams, pine or oak furniture, colourful fabrics and creaking floorboards, they have a simple yet smart style. Sensibly, only the outside rooms have televisions.
Address: Loweswater, Cockermouth CA13 0RU
Read more: The best mountains to climb in the UK
This hotel proves that you don’t have to give up your luxuries to enjoy an outdoors-adventures break (although the latter activities are not compulsory). The modern, chalet-style building of slate, timber and glass, and on the edge of a forested estate in the Langdale valley, has just 16 suites. Each comes with a ‘host’ who acts as a modern-day butler, and can kit guests out in walking gear, provide walking and cycling routes, offer a drop-off and pick-up service, and even the loan of an electric BMW car. All provided free, subject to availability. If that’s all too much, guests can totter across to a swanky spa, plus a leisure centre with 20-metre pool.
Suites are ridiculously large, and furnished in an understatedly luxurious way with pale-oak floorboards, wool-covered sofas, real fires and soft countryside colours. Everything is on a grand scale from beds to sofas to bathrooms – some have freestanding baths in the rooms, all but one have balconies. There’s a jolly bistro on the estate (shared with another hotel plus chalet-style lodges), plus 24-hour complimentary drinks and snacks.
Address: Great Langdale, Ambleside LA22 9JD
