The best Lake District b&bs
An expert guide to the top bed and breakfasts in the Lake District, including the best for walking routes, dog-friendly services, cosy bedrooms, delicious local breakfasts and locations including Windermere, Keswick, Ambleside, Hawkshead and Grizedale Forest.
The Hideaway at Windermere
Windermere, Lake District, England
8Telegraph expert rating
This b&b occupies a former Victorian schoolmaster’s house on a narrow lane in Windermere. The reddish stone used to construct the property mean it is known locally as the Red House. It's plush in look and feel, with thick carpet, framed prints of Brighton during Georgian times, reading lamps plus leather sofas and armchairs. The b&b has 11 guestrooms, including a duplex in which a spiral staircase links the bedroom to a bathroom with twin washbasins. The property is a 25-minute walk away from the centre of Bowness-on-Windermere. The eastern jetty for the Lake Windermere ferry, which crosses between Bowness and Ferry House, is just over a mile away and is a good spot to enjoy sunsets. Go for the smoked haddock with poached egg for breakfast. Read expert review From £89per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
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Rosemount Guest House
Windermere, Lake District, England
7Telegraph expert rating
Rosemount occupies a Victorian house on the road between Bowness-in-Windermere and Windermere. It occupies a stone-built, late-Victorian house with bay windows and a black and white gable. The high ceilings and hotchpotch of room sizes reflect the building’s origins as a late-19th century home. The owners, Andrew and Louise Jones, are knowledgeable about the surrounding region and helpful in suggesting nearby pubs and restaurants. Andrew, a former professional golfer, can provide insights into local courses. Now a keen amateur photographer, he’s also happy suggesting locations for photographing local landscapes. Breakfast showcases local produce, including Cumberland sausage, sauces made in Hawkshead, plus jams and marmalades produced in nearby Wigton. Read expert review From £88per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
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Grizedale Lodge
Hawkshead, Cumbria, England
8Telegraph expert rating
This refined guesthouse, a former hunting lodge on the edge of scenic Grizedale Forest, is the perfect rural retreat for keen walkers and dog-owners. It makes for a pleasant upgrade from the usual hikers’ hangouts that populate the area. Muted tones predominate on the walls – sage greens, pale greys, delicate blues – providing a low-key backdrop to the statement bedsteads (wrought-iron or four-poster) and roll-top baths. It is the home of Richard and Deb Charley, so service is very personal, but in other ways it's more like a boutique hotel: there’s a restaurant, an honesty bar, a comfortable shared lounge with log-burner, board games and packed lunches can be organised. The menu, ably cooked by Deb, changes daily and focuses on filling family favourites such as tray-baked salmon, steak and ale pie, and a crumble of the day. Breakfast is cooked to order. Read expert review From £99per night
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Randy Pike
Ambleside, Lake District, England
8Telegraph expert rating
This tiny, extravagantly decorated bed and breakfast, is set in fabulous rolling countryside at the heart of Beatrix Potter country. It's only a short walk on woodland paths to Blelham Tarn and the western shore of Windermere. The whole place is decorated in a brilliantly lavish, humorous style – expect gilt-framed mirrors, metallic tiles, floor-length swag curtains and freestanding baths. The Dawson suite is probably the best of the rooms, with a nickel bateau bath big enough for two. It’s worth staying a few nights just to explore the breakfast menu: everything from granola ‘trifle’ to the full-cooked Cumbrian. The sister restaurant, The Jumble Room, is actually located in pretty Grasmere, 15 minutes away by car, although Randy Pike guests are chauffeured there and back at no extra cost. Read expert review From £200per night
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Nanny Brow
Ambleside, Lake District, England
8Telegraph expert rating
An elegant Arts and Crafts b&b in peaceful grounds outside Ambleside, full of period details and furnishings, and with lofty views up Langdale. It’s had considerable money spent on it by the current owners to restore its period features and feel: oak floors and panelling, plasterwork ceiling friezes, huge leaded windows and carved oak fireplaces. Maps and walks can be borrowed, packed lunches and flask-filling are available plus there are drying facilities and cycle storage. The 14 rooms and suites feel like guest rooms in a wealthy friend’s ancestral country home. For a small operation, the breakfast choice and quality are good, from fresh fruit salad and homemade drop scones to smoked salmon with scrambled eggs, and the full ‘Lakeland’. Read expert review From £115per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
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Summer Hill Country House
Lake District, Cumbria, England
8Telegraph expert rating
Deep in the Lake District countryside, and just a short walk away from renowned beauty spot Tarn Hows, this early 18th-century house has retained much of its traditional layout and architecture. The low prices and good rooms and service make this one of the best bargains in the Hawkshead and Coniston area. None of the five rooms are enormous, but they're all smartly appointed with welcome touches such as complimentary DVDs, DAB clock radios, Gilchrist & Soames bathstuffs and Mac Minis for getting online. Rooms Three and Four are the pick of the bunch in terms of space and colour-scheme, while Room Five probably has the best garden views. There's an Aga-cooked fry-up for brekkie. Read expert review From £91per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
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The Windermere Suites
Windermere, Lake District, England
8Telegraph expert rating
A bold and unashamedly sexy b&b with lashings of black and silver, and huge mood-lit bathrooms that place an emphasis on relaxation and romance. The eight vast rooms (three with patios, two with private entrances) follow the same suave, 'night-club' theme with statement lampshades and a 'fifty shades of grey' colour scheme in textured wallpapers, brocade curtains and velvet throws. Lazy breakfasts are served in-room, and includes everything from croissants, porridge and granola to eggs Benedict, cold meat platters and full-cooked. It's at the edge of Windermere town, on the main road to the lake. A big plus is that Windermere railway station is only 10 minutes up the road. Read expert review From £179per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
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Moss Grove Organic
Lake District, Cumbria, England
7Telegraph expert rating
Moss Grove Organic is more city boutique than country cosy - the Victorian house has been refurbished with a combination of high-class furnishings and eco-friendly materials. The 11 rooms really dazzle. Every effort has been made to ensure environmental friendliness: floors and furniture are made from reclaimed wood, walls are stuffed with sheep's wool insulation, and even the clay paints are organic and biodegradable. The bathrooms are equally huge and gleam with sandstone tiles and spa tubs. A generous Mediterranean buffet breakfast is served in the kitchen-cum-dining room. There's a good selection of pastries, cold meats and cheeses, plus herbal teas and proper coffee. It's right in the middle of Grasmere, so you're in a plum position for all the sights. Read expert review From £84per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
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Howe Keld
Keswick, Cumbria, England
7Telegraph expert rating
From the outside, it looks like a terraced house, but inside it's very much a modern b&b. David and Valerie run a tight ship, and they're mines of information on Keswick and the surrounding area, and keep an up-to-date list of their favourite places to eat and drink around town. All the rooms are decorated in a similar style, with minimal clutter and cream-and-cappuccino colour palettes. Pocket-sprung beds, handmade furniture, Farrow & Ball paints and oak floors provide a touch of luxury, and the slate key-fobs are a nice nod to the town's mining heritage. Breakfast is fantastic: Valerie used to work at Crank's, so she knows how to lay on a spread. Options include mix-your-own muesli, fresh smoothies, home-baked organic bread and vegetarian rissoles, and the bacon and sausages come from one of Cumbria's top butchers. Read expert review From £130per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
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Contributions by Helen Pickles, Cal Flyn, Stuart Forster and Oliver Berry.
