Holiday in Lake District

About Lake District

The Lake District is England's greatest national park — a landscape of mirror-smooth lakes, mist-covered mountains, emerald green valleys, and dry stone walls that have been winding through the hills for centuries. Since 2017 a UNESCO World Heritage site, the park in northwest England covers 2,362 square kilometers and is home to the 16 largest natural lakes in the country as well as England's highest mountain, Scafell Pike (978 m). Windermere, the largest natural lake in England at 17 kilometers long, is the heart of the park: steamships have been operating since the 19th century between Ambleside in the north and Lakeside in the south, passing wooded shores, Victorian villas, and the Blackwell Arts & Crafts House. The town of Bowness-on-Windermere on the eastern shore is the main tourist hub with boat rentals, restaurants, and the World of Beatrix Potter Museum. Beatrix Potter, the creator of Peter Rabbit, lived and worked in the Lake District: her farmhouse Hill Top near Near Sawrey is a lovingly preserved museum, where everything looks as it did during her lifetime. With the proceeds from her books, Potter purchased over 1,600 acres of land in the Lake District and bequeathed it to the National Trust — a significant contribution to the preservation of the landscape. The hiking opportunities are legendary: Alfred Wainwright described 214 peaks (the Wainwrights) in his hand-drawn hiking guides, whose ascents become a lifelong mission for enthusiastic hikers. Helvellyn via Striding Edge (a narrow rocky ridge with drops on both sides) is the most exciting mountain hike in England. Catbells above Derwentwater offers an easier ascent with spectacular lake views. The Lake District inspired not only Beatrix Potter but also the Romantic poets: William Wordsworth lived in Grasmere and wrote his most famous works here, including the Daffodils Ode (I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud). Dove Cottage, his home, is now a literary museum.