‘If we were meant to stay in one place, we’d have roots instead of feet’
Anon
Places in the Lake District we’ve loved visiting
Hotels/Inns
The New Dungeon Ghyll, Langdale: Rooms all with spectacular views, dog friendly bar with good food and ale. Pretty garden and terrace looking down the valley. Walks into the hills from the door.
The Swan at Grasmere: Lovely and cosy, very relaxed, good food and great dog friendly garden rooms at the back of the hotel with your own separate entrance. Good position for walks from the door.
The Pheasant at Bassenthwaite: A centuries old Cumbrian inn that has a fantastic bar with leather lined walls. Superbly cosy in winter with a lovely comfortable lounge and open fire. Dog friendly except in the restaurant.
The Wateredge, Ambleside: Superb position overlooking Windermere and a short walk to the centre of Ambleside. Refurbished after the floods of 2015, this is a genuinely comfortable hotel with a restaurant offering really quality food. So cosy in winter, with open fires, fabulous garden in summer looking down Windermere. Very friendly.
The Wordsworth Hotel, Grasmere: Lovely and relaxing - great squashy sofas in the lounge and conservatory/bar, and a large restaurant. Not dog friendly. The indoor pool, hot tub and spa are a real treat for ironing out those walking kinks!
The Wasdale Head Inn: A world famous and iconic pub at the head of the sublime Wasdale Valley. Surrounded by all the highest mountains of Lakeland, it is the home of British Rock Climbing. Superb food, lots of history, right in the thick of it all.
Pubs
The Traveller's Rest, Grasmere: An old favourite in a great position with good value food served all day, real ale, dog friendly and a welcome open fire. Very friendly staff.
The Sun, Coniston: A real winter pub, dark and cosy, with low ceilings, open fires. muddy boots and wet dogs. Good value food, real ale and views over the village from the terrace.
The Wild Boar Inn, Bowness on Windermere: Real ales and its own steak smokehouse. Age blackened stone flagged floors, an open range and low, beamed ceilings make this very cosy around Christmas. Dog friendly and a warm atmosphere.
The Hikers Bar at the Old Dungeon Ghyll: A Lakeland icon at the end of Great Langdale. Basic, but with a great atmosphere and decent food, usually busy with hikers chatting about their days on the fells. Just the place to relax with your muddy boots on in front of the fire or in the garden in summer.
The Kirkstile Inn: An old, traditional, tucked away pub with low ceilings, open fires and a buzzing atmosphere in the evening. Handy for coffee and cake before tramping the fells. Dog friendly.
The Queen’s Head, Troutbeck: Another old traditional Lakeland pub, now almost completely and beautifully renovated after a devastating fire in 2015, which luckily didn’t damage its warm and welcoming atmosphere. Iconic Elizabethan four poster bed bar, lovely food - not the cheapest - but a roaring fire and wonderful views.
Cafes
Herdwick Cafe in Coniston: Gorgeous homemade cakes, a good choice of drinks and light lunches in lovely surroundings, surrounded by all things Herdwick. They adore dogs and regularly post pictures of their canine visitors on their social media pages.
Baldrys in Grasmere: Dog friendly, lovely mismatched china cups and saucers and whopping cakes. Always warm and cosy.
Chesters by the River, Skelwith Bridge: Pretty riverside setting with good food, stunning cakes and a fantastic shop attached selling local crafts and home baked artisan breads. Dog friendly in the outdoor seating area.
Bluebird Cafe, Coniston: Right on the lake shore serving coffee, cakes and light meals. An outdoor seating area for warmer weather watching activity on the water. Dog friendly on the covered terrace.
Wilf’s Cafe, Staveley: Right on the river in The Mill Yard, this is housed in what was once an old bobbin loft. Warm and welcoming, seating inside and on the decking outside, great choice of food, home baked cakes and breads. Dog friendly.
The Sawmill Tearoom near Bassenthwaite. A lovely, convenient stop for a cup of coffee before heading up through beautiful Dodd Woods to the high hills beyond, or for a warming cup of tea and a hunk of cake after a long, cold day.