The most romantic hotels in the Lake District
An expert guide to the most romantic hotels in the Lake District, including the best for lake views, grand interiors, sumptuous bedrooms with rolltop baths, gourmet restaurants and sprawling private gardens, in areas including Penrith, Windemere and Grasmere.
Brimstone at Langdale
Lake District, Cumbria, England
9Telegraph expert rating
A romantic’s dream, this hotel in the Langdale Estate brings something different to the Lake District’s luxury market. The local stone exterior gives way to brilliant ski lodge-like indulgence – blazing fires, spa bathrooms, private balconies, help-yourself boot room and a reading lounge with free snacks and drinks. From the glowing, glass-fronted stove to the double shower, enormous spa bath and bi-fold doors opening out to Lakeland views – it’s impossible to find fault with bedrooms as well designed and delightfully indulgent as these. In the restaurant, order the sharing lamb shoulder, served in a deep oven dish with lashings of veg and shallot gravy. Read expert review From £250per night
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Gilpin Hotel & Lake House
Lake Windermere, Lake District, England
8Telegraph expert rating
There are flowers everywhere, charmingly arranged; also expect a light-filled indoor pool and sauna, and a terrace by the tarn with hot tub, outdoor heaters, deck chairs and private corners. An elegant, bookish drawing room leading to a sun-filled conservatory. Six unimpeachable bedrooms have good furniture and armchairs, lovely lamps, shelves of books and objects and piles of the latest magazines, plus iPads and iPods. Guests can stroll up to Cat Crag, with a 360 degree panorama stretching as far as the Isle of Man, but many simply stay put – they've even been seen rowing on the lake in their dressing gowns. Read expert review From £215per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
The Cranleigh Boutique
Lake District, Cumbria, England
7Telegraph expert rating
This hotel is a great choice for a romantic break in rooms that combine bold, modern décor with king-size beds and designer lighting. If you can afford to, fork out for one of the hotel’s two showcase suites: the Hideaway and the Sanctuary. The former features dark, sultry fabrics, a 50-inch television, underfloor heating and a shower built for two. The latter is a detached bungalow with its own outdoor hot tub, a gigantic glass bath, eccentric, coloured lighting (optional) and a terrifically gaudy bed with an eight-feet headboard. No restaurant but plenty of eating options close by, and excellent breakfasts relying on fresh local produce. Read expert review From £117per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
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Askham Hall
Penrith, Cumbria, England
9Telegraph expert rating
This grand hotel, the medieval family home of the Earls of Lonsdale, offers authentic country house living in stately surroundings: vast rooms, scattered antiques and a well-worn but comfortable, informal and inviting air. There's a vaulted library with an honesty bar, plus a self-operated sauna. Outside there’s a small, heated pool, but the real joy is the gardens with lawned terraces, colourful borders, vast topiary, a tangle of woodland and a substantial kitchen garden. Monthly dinners are held in the panelled, candle-lit private dining-room. Guests can fish on the rivers Eden and Lowther, borrow walking routes or book a spa treatment. All rooms have decent views. Read expert review From £150per night
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New House Farm
Yewdale, Lake District, England
8Telegraph expert rating
An atmospheric, converted farmhouse in the quieter, northern Lakes. The five generously sized rooms are designed for relaxation and romance with huge bathrooms – some with double hot tubs – large beds (two four-posters) and a lack of fancy hi-tech extras (no TVs, music systems, Nespresso machines) although there are colourful Roberts radios. Three of the region’s quieter lakes (Loweswater, Crummock Water as well as Buttermere) are within a 10-minute drive, offering both low and high-level walking. Read expert review From £120per night
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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. Glass tables and white or silver-leaf-painted designer furniture – including baroque-style beds – add bling while bathrooms are dark affairs for getting steamy in with huge air-baths, mood lighting and wall TVs. Lazy breakfasts are served in-room, and there are restaurants nearby for evening meals. At the edge of Windermere town, on the main road to the lake, it’s out of the tourist busy-ness yet within easy reach if you don’t mind walking: five minutes to Windermere; 20 minutes to Bowness and the lake. Read expert review From £179per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
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The Forest Side
Grasmere, Cumbria, England
9Telegraph expert rating
Forest Side is a glamorous address in the heart of the Lake District that puts food – and foraging – firmly at its centre. The house has been beautifully transformed with shimmering crushed velvet sofas; silver and bird of paradise wallpapers; and floorboards reused to make the dining tables. The Herdwick sheep that graze outside can be thanked for all the carpets, the insulation, even the wool used in the divine custom-made Harrison Spinks beds. The best thing about the rooms are the superb bathrooms, with touch-button controls for bath and shower, and herbal infusions products. Feast on the likes of scurvy grass and pickled allium flowers in the foraging-inspired Michelin-starred restaurant. Read expert review From £184per night Check availability Rates provided by Mr & Mrs Smith
