Bowness-on-Windermere

Set among secluded gardens with views to Lake Windermere, this posh hotel dating to the early 1900s is 1.2 miles from The World of Beatrix Potter Attraction in Bowness village. Airy rooms with period decor feature en suite bathrooms, flat-screen TVs, WiFi access and tea and coffeemaking facilities. Some rooms feature sitting areas, while upgraded rooms with expansive lake views have iPod docks and fresh fruit. Free buffet or cooked breakfast is offered. A quaint restaurant serves modern British cuisine and traditional afternoon tea. There are ornate lounges and a garden terrace, plus croquet sets.

Nestled among quaint English gardens and overlooking Lake Windermere, this high-end hotel is housed in a traditional 1870s mansion once owned by children’s author Beatrix Potter. Ranging from simple rooms with tartan fabrics to airy suites with contemporary decor, all units are stair-access only and feature free Wi-Fi, flat-screen TVs, and tea and coffeemaking facilities. Some have lake or garden views. Suites add separate sitting areas and/or fireplaces. Room service is available. Breakfast and parking are free. There’s also an acclaimed restaurant and a bar. Other amenities include gardens, lounges, an indoor pool and massage services.

Overlooking Lake Windermere, this elegant country house hotel is 1.1 miles from Bowness-on-Windermere town centre and 1.4 miles from Windermere Golf Club. Country-chic rooms come with flat-screen TVs, and tea and coffeemaking equipment. Upgraded rooms add lake views and/or private balconies; some also have whirlpool tubs. Free breakfast is served in a refined modern British restaurant with a terrace; afternoon tea and evening meals are also available. Other amenities include gardens and event facilities.

This cosy boutique hotel with a dancing fountain is 1 mile from the Arts & Crafts-style Blackwell house and 3 miles from Hill Top, the former home of Beatrix Potter. Chic rooms with ornate furnishings offer free Wi-Fi and flat-screen TVs, and some have outdoor hot tubs. Upgraded rooms and suites add fireplaces, living areas and circular or 4-poster beds, plus private patios and/or steam rooms. Room service is available. Parking and full breakfast are free, and a swanky restaurant serves classic British fare with local ingredients. There’s a glass-enclosed pool with a fountain, a steam room and a sauna, plus a full-service spa.

In a circa-1900 stone-built property on Windermere lake, this rural hotel is 1.8 miles from the notable Arts and Crafts house Blackwell and 3.5 miles from Windermere Golf Club. The refined, traditional-style lodgings all include en suite bathrooms, and have TVs, and tea and coffeemaking facilities. Suites add antique oak beds, sofas and lake views, as well as outdoor hot tubs and/or garden/decked areas. Fishing passes are free, as well as Wi-Fi in the bar area, and private parking. There’s an upscale restaurant serving traditional British cuisine, a bar and a seasonal, waterside snack bar. There’s also an indoor pool, a spa and 2 jetties.

Set on sprawling, picturesque grounds with a private jetty on the Lake Windermere waterfront, this traditional hotel occupies a grand Georgian mansion. It’s within 3.6 miles’ drive from the A591 and National Rail trains at Windermere. The ornate, period-style rooms feature antique furnishings, free Wi-Fi and flat-screen smart TVs. Upgraded rooms add armoires, chaise lounges or sofas, and desks or vanity tables. Private log cabins have kitchens. Modern British cuisine is served in a formal restaurant, plus there’s an ornate lounge bar. Afternoon tea or picnic baskets can be taken on a lawn overlooking the lake (fees apply).

A 7-minute walk from Windermere, this upscale hotel is also 10 minutes’ walk from The World of Beatrix Potter. The elegant rooms have free WiFi and flat-screen TVs, plus tea and coffeemaking facilities. Suites add separate living areas; some have whirlpool tubs and balconies. Breakfast and parking are included in the rate. Other Amenities include a British restaurant, a bar and a cosy lounge. There’s also a spa with an indoor pool, a sauna, a steam room and a plunge pool, as well as 2 hot tubs.

Tucked inside a 19th-century stone mansion overlooking Lake Windermere, this sophisticated hotel is a 5-minute walk from The World of Beatrix Potter. The 26 refined rooms (available on a B&B or half-board basis) feature flat-screen TVs, and tea and coffeemaking facilities; some also have lake views. Upgraded rooms add sitting areas. Room service is available. Featuring a grand piano, cosy lounges and views of the countryside, the white-tablecloth bar/restaurant serves free breakfast daily, along with traditional British cuisine, and a carvery lunch on Sundays. Off-street parking is available.

Windermere is the largest natural lake in England. It is a ribbon lake formed in a glacial trough after the retreat of ice at the start of the current interglacial period. It has been one of the country’s most popular places for holidays and summer homes since the arrival of the Kendal and Windermere Railway’s branch line in 1847. Historically forming part of the border between Lancashire and Westmorland, it is now within the county of Cumbria and the Lake District National Park. The lake contains 18 islands.By far the largest is the privately owned Belle Isle (16.18 hectares, 40.0 acres) opposite Bowness and around a kilometre in length. Its older name was Lang Holme, and 800 years ago it was the centre of the manor of Windermere and later, in effect, of a moiety of the barony of Kendal. The other islands or “holmes” are considerably smaller. The word “holme” means small island and comes from Old Norse holmr. The island of Lady Holme is named after the chantry that formerly stood there and in former centuries was sometimes called St Mary Holme or just Mary Holme. The remaining islands are Bee Holme, Blake Holme, Crow Holme, Birk or Birch […]