England’s biggest national park is really just one great big adventure playground — and unsurprisingly, it makes a cracking spot for family holidays. Whether it’s fell walking, ghyll scrambling, mountain biking or stand-up paddleboarding, there’s no end of adventure on offer in the Lake District for active, energetic kids.
When it comes to accommodation, many people choose to stay in a cottage or holiday apartment for the undeniable convenience (being able to cook your own meals and having a washing machine are definite boons for families). But that has its drawbacks: second homes and holiday lets are taking over in many of the Lake District’s most popular villages, contributing to a growing housing crisis, and frankly, it’s not the most relaxing option (isn’t part of the idea of holidays to get away from the chores?)
For more of a treat, we’ve picked out our favourite family-friendly hotels in the Lake District where you can let someone else worry about the domestic duties for a while — not to mention the kids.
Augill Castle, Kirkby Stephen
What could possibly be more fun for families than staying in your very own Lake District castle? This stately pile near Kirkby Stephen feels like a real-life Hogwarts, complete with turrets, battlements and 215 acres of sprawling grounds to explore. It’s enormously welcoming for families: room configurations range from family-sized spaces to interconnecting rooms, and the drawing room is entirely at your disposal (leaving the toys and books lying around is positively encouraged here). There are plenty of outdoor pursuits on your doorstep, too, from ghyll scrambling to canyoning — and there are cookery lessons for children if the weather won’t play ball. Even better, you’re in one of Lakes’ lesser-explored areas, the lovely Eden Valley: the little ones will feel like kings and queens of all they survey.
Kids’ club N
Pool N
Price £££
Langdale Hotel, Elterwater
Despite the name, this modern country club isn’t actually in Great Langdale: it’s a couple of miles east, on the edge of the pretty village of Elterwater. Still, the scenery is lovely, and the hotel’s facilities offer pretty much everything the discerning family could ask for: a wonderful indoor heated pool, sauna, gym, tennis court and soft play area. But it’s the accommodation that makes this a special spot: several handsome, two-storey Scandinavian-style lodges are dotted around the wooded estate, with vast glass windows, huge bedrooms, verandahs, hot tubs and private saunas. For a more traditional vibe, there are also stone-fronted cottages to rent.
Kids’ club N
Pool Y
Price £££
Low Wood Bay Resort, Windermere
England’s largest lake, Windermere, is popular for a reason: it’s very central and there are plenty of accommodation options. This hotel is an upmarket option on Windermere’s busier eastern side, roughly halfway between ever-busy Bowness-on-Windermere and the attractive market town of Ambleside. The original hotel has been much expanded, with additions including the exclusive, glass-fronted Winander Club, which has its own concierges and a knockout roof terrace. The Hazel Family Rooms don’t all have a lake view, but they do have access to the hotel pool, and the Low Wood Watersports Centre can arrange boat hire, canoeing and kayaking and sailing sessions for your own Swallows and Amazons adventures.
Kids’ club N
Pool Y
Price £££
Armathwaite Hall, Keswick
The style here is very much classic country hotel, but Armathwaite Hall deserves a mention for the sheer range of activities on offer: archery, clay pigeon shooting, falconry, canoeing, forest bathing and more. The hotel sits in 400 acres of lakeside woods and lawns, and even has its own wildlife park, where the kids can get up close to lemurs, meerkats and alpacas. The location overlooking Bassenthwaite Lake is wonderful and there’s a fine pool. The interconnecting rooms are the most practical for families.
Kids’ club N
Pool Y
Price £££
Daffodil Hotel, Grasmere
This is the only hotel near Wordsworth’s beloved home village of Grasmere with a lake view — and that’s a big selling point. The building is a vast, Victorian affair typical of traditional Lakeland country hotels, but inside it’s been comprehensively modernised, with bright, colourful decor, splashes of pop art and a spa with thermal pool. The family rooms feature a big bed for the grown-ups and an adjoining room with twin beds for the youngsters. There aren’t many organised activities to keep them entertained, however — but they’ll definitely love the lavish afternoon tea.
Kids’ club N
Pool Y
Price £££
Cuckoo Brow Inn, Far Sawrey
You’re deep into Beatrix Potter country here: her famous cottage, Hill Top, is in the next hamlet over at Near Sawrey, a ten minute stroll away. This village inn dates back to the 1800s, and sits in a pleasingly rural spot a mile uphill from Windermere’s western shore, surrounded by trees, fields and a gaggle of slate-roofed cottages. It’s not fancy, but cosy enough in a traditional kind of way: there are several family rooms with bunk beds for the kids, and it’s admirably dog-friendly (pooches attract a £10 premium). The location is excellent: activity options include walks along Windermere (including to Potter family’s favourite holiday spot, Wray Castle), boating on Coniston Water and cycling around nearby Grizedale Forest.
Kids’ club N
Pool N
Price ££
New Dungeon Ghyll Hotel, Great Langdale
If you’re planning on a family hiking trip, then this hotel in Great Langdale is a fine place to make base camp. It provides majestic views of the surrounding fells, and while the accommodation is functional rather than fancy, it’s excellent value and there are plenty of family-sized rooms to accommodate most family configurations. The Walkers Bar serves food, but don’t miss a visit to the Old Dungeon Ghyll just along the valley: it’s the hikers’ haunt par excellence. For a short walk, try the trail up to the waterfall of Dungeon Ghyll. The much longer circuit of the Langdale Pikes is an epic, but only for energetic children who are up for a challenge.
Kids’ club N
Pool N
Price ££
Lakeside Hotel, Newby Bridge
A stalwart at the southwestern corner of Windermere (handy for Newby Bridge, not so much for Bowness or Windermere town, unless you’re happy to catch the boat), this is a practical hotel with some good accommodation choices for families: the courtyard family suites have ample space, with adjoining rooms for the kids. The 17m pool is a big plus, and there are lakeside gardens to explore — with attractions including the aquarium, steam railway and Lakeland Motor Museum right on your doorstep.
Kids’ club N
Pool Y
Price ££
Windermere Manor, Windermere
Windermere’s eastern side is littered with grand manor houses and former gentlemen’s residences, most of which have long since been converted into hotels and B&Bs. Windermere Manor is typical of them, a sprawling, stone-fronted Victorian pile surrounded by lawns, handily positioned about halfway between Windermere town and Bowness along Rayrigg Road. The building is striking, but the interior style isn’t going to win any prizes — it’s more reminiscent of a bland mid-tier B&B than a luxury hotel. Still, it’s decent value, and the children will enjoy the pool and gardens — and it’s handy for Windermere adventures such as the playground at Brockhole, the ever-popular World of Beatrix Potter Attraction and, of course, boat cruises on Windermere.
Kids’ club N
Pool Y
Price ££
Another Place The Lake, Ullswater
This lakeside beauty on the shores of Ullswater isn’t just one of the Lake District’s most luxurious hotels, it’s also perhaps the pick of places for the kids. The whole place is geared around getting outdoors and active, whether that means a wild swim session, a paddleboarding adventure or a kayaking trip (you can sign up for all these and more at the hotel’s own activity centre, a former sheep shed by the lake). The location is grand, with plentiful grounds and a wraparound Ullswater panorama, with fells framing every view — not least from the glass-walled infinity pool. Consider staying in the swish treehouse or one of the shepherd’s huts: the kids will adore them.
Kids’ club Y
Pool Y
Price £££
Swan Hotel, Newby Bridge
At the southern end of Windermere, this hotel near Newby Bridge has the best of both worlds: the spoils of a hotel with the convenience of a self-catering cottage (complete with a kitchen and washing machine for mucky togs). The cottages are bright and modern, sleeping up to eight, and you can bring along the pooch too (you can even get dinner delivered to your door if you’re feeling too relaxed to cook). Activity-wise, the kids could head off for a paddleboarding session while you chill in the spa — and the popular Lakes Aquarium and quaint, steam-powered Lakeside & Haverthwaite Railway are nearby.
Kids’ club N
Pool N
Price ££
Yewfield, Hawkshead Hill
This Victorian manor is one of those spots that you really want to keep to yourself. High on a wooded fellside between Hawkshead and Grasmere, it’s ensconced in 80 acres of flower gardens, lawns, terraces and private woodland (all ripe for exploring). Despite its period looks, the hotel is actually very eco-friendly (it’s heated by its own biomass boiler). Most rooms can be made up as twins, and families also have the option of booking one of the apartments or the self-catering Swallows Nest, on the top floor of a converted coach house. Breakfast is 100 per cent veggie: the owners also run Ambleside’s top vegetarian restaurant, Fellinis, as well as the popular pizza joint Zeffirellis.
Kids’ club N
Pool Y
Price £££
YHA Ambleside
Hostelling is an excellent option for families in the Lakes: some of the YHA’s top properties are located here, and they’re a long way from the old-fashioned, institutional affairs you might have in mind. YHA Ambleside is the flagship, a huge lakefront property which offers the kind of lake views for which you’d normally have to pay through the nose — and all for less per night for the entire family than you’d pay for a bog-standard B&B. The four-berth rooms are perfect for families: while the decor is basic, most have their own en suite bathrooms, and the bunk beds are always fun. Despite the name, it is a bit of a trek into Ambleside; thankfully, there’s parking on site as well as a café for cheap eats. The YHAs in Keswick and Borrowdale are well worth checking out, too.
Kids’ club N
Pool N
Price £££
The Yan at Broadrayne, Grasmere
A classy restaurant-with-rooms (formerly a youth hostel, and before that a farm), the Yan is one of those in-the-know places you only tend to find after a few visits to the Lakes. Run with aplomb by the Keighley family, it’s on a farmstead just north of Grasmere, but feels much more remote, with big views of the central fells and Wordsworth favourite Helm Crag. Most visitors just come for supper, but the farm has two quaint, cosy self-catering cottages that can sleep a family of four (plus two-person apartments): packed lunches and slap-up dinners can be delivered to your door. Another memorable option might be to book their two glamping pods — timber-lined and biomass-heated, they’re a sure-fire hit with the children.
Kids’ club N
Pool N
Price ££
Source: The Times
