There are many hotels in the Lake District and many beautiful areas making the choice of where to stay endless. One of the most popular areas in the Lake District is Keswick and the Borrowdale Valley. Not only is the scenery and the nearby lake, Derwentwater giving spectacular views, but the fells are some of the best in the county for walking. The most famous fell being Scafell Pike, the largest mountain in England standing at a stagering 978 metres (3209 feet). This dominates the panorama for miles around.

There are many Lake District bed and breakfast establishments in the area ranging from small b & b’s to luxury Lake District hotels with leisure facilities. One such hotel is the Borrowdale Hotel which is Nestled at the foot of Shepherd’s Crag in the beautiful valley of Borrowdale. This hotel has a totally unique atmosphere enveloping the visitors from the moment they arrive. Warm and welcoming fires in Winter and cool drinks and strawberry teas on the lawns in the Summer served with a smile.    

Built in 1866 the Borrowdale Hotel has an interesting history and many charming artifacts adorning the walls, such as old hotel prints, Victorian coffee grinders and silver salvers, plate warmers and brass bedpans - not forgetting the original 41 room bells, which, although no longer working, are still proudly displayed outside the reception area.

It has been thought in the past that staying in hotels with children is a bad idea, not places geared up for children. Parents however, want a bit of luxury and do not always want to camp or go self catering. Times are changing and hoteliers are waking up to the idea that families are a large market hardly targeted. There are some hotels that operate  strict “no children” policy but many hotels who are quite happy having them stay are adapting rooms and creating fun things for children to do to entice families to stay.

An area full of activities and stunning scenery is the area of Keswick and Bassenthwaite. There are many Keswick hotels that offer child friendly rooms with excellent leisure facilities on site. These facilities include heated swimming pools, gyms, tennis courts, putting greens and some even have games rooms with both board games and computer games such as Wii consoles installed. The practical facilities within these hotels come in the form of flexible meal times for children, the use of complimentary high chairs and cots, bed time books and stocks of essential items such as nappies, baby milks and food and dummies.

The Bassenthwaite Lake area encompasses some of the most well equipped hotels Lake District. The lake is one of the largest in the English Lake District situated at the foot of Skiddaw and in such close proximity to Keswick, it is a great location. The lake is 4 miles long and is the shallowest of all the lakes with its maximum depth just 70 feet. For parents interested in bird watching, it is one of the best places to spot an Osprey.

Willowford is a 100-acre farm, currently converting to the organic standards of the Soil Association. The farm carries a flock of Swaledale ewes that produce prime lamb, two dozen chickens for eggs and some Ayrshire cows from the dairy herd of neighbouring Slack House Organic Farm. They also have a hive of bees, numerous cats and a very entertaining sheepdog.

Initially, it is believed that the Wall from Willowford westwards was built of turf. Hadrian ordered it to be rebuilt in stone in AD122 and it stood firm for around 300 years until the fall of Rome. After that it fell into ruin, helped by looters taking the dressed stone to build farms and houses. Over time the Wall collapsed into more of a mound that was slowly covered with earth and vegetation. Nearly 1600 years later the mound at Willowford Farm was excavated to reveal one of the longest unbroken stretches of Hadrian’s Wall remaining, which at places still stands 8ft high and includes the remains of two turrets.

Where the Wall meets the River Irthing in the bottom field of this Hadrian’s Wall accommodation farm, the impressive remains of a Roman bridge can now be seen (artist’s impression opposite). The design of the bridge and the sheer size of the stones used is testament to the Romans’ great engineering skills, as well as their manpower. In our top field, the Romans built a camp, probably during the construction of the stone Wall, whose foundations are still clearly visible. This Hadrian’s Wall bed and breakfast is less than one mile from Birdoswald Roman Fort and a day’s walk or quick bus ride from Housesteads, Vindolanda and many other Roman attractions. Where better to explore this fascinating period of world history?

Archangelos Guest House offers a choice of quality Bolton bed and breakfast and Bolton self catering accommodation with unparalleled quality and value. Just a few minutes from the motorway, and within easy reach of the Reebok Stadium, Middlebrook Retail and Leisure complex and the Trafford Centre in Manchester, there is no better place to stay.

Whether visiting on business or pleasure, a quiet comfortable night is assured, with private bathrooms and kitchens in either the studio apartment or full 3 bedroom house. Both properties include:

Wi-Fi Internet Access
Complimentary Welcome Pack
Breathtaking Views
BBQ & Garden Furniture
Pet Friendly Bicycle Wash & Storage Facilities
Off Road Parking
English & German Languages Spoken
2 Minute Walk to West Pennine Moors

Please visit www.archangelos.co.uk for more details.

Ambleside Lodge offers high quality Lake District bed and breakfast accommodation situated in Ambleside at the heart of the Lake District, just a two minute walk from the town centre and about five minutes walk to Lake Windermere.

This former Gentleman’s residence originally built circa 1875 has been beautifully restored and tastefully decorated and it now provides elegant Lake District B&B accommodation in Ambleside.

The house features some exceptional examples of original oak panelling, dating back to 1654, and brought here in 1875 from local churches, the skills and craftsmanship that were used, can now be shared by all, in the different rooms throughout the building. Most of the walls are between 2 and 3 feet thick and are primarily constructed from Lakeland stone.

Staylakedistrict.co.uk provides an online guide to Cumbria- the Lake District accommodation and holiday activities. The site features all different types of accommodation including Lake District hotels, lake district bed and breakfasts, lake district cottages, plus caravan and camping sites. So whatever type of accommodation you are looking for you should be able to find the ideal place to stay on this site.

The staylakedistrict.co.uk site also includes a choice of visitor attractions and activities, plus some selected pubs and restaurants where you can sample Cumbrian cuisine using some of the finest local ingredients.

Fine Individual Hotels have cracked the 50 mark in their continued expansion of their independent UK hotels marketing collection. Originally set up in 1994 as a consortium, two of the original founders, Mike Bevans(owner, AA Inspector’s Choice 3 red star Linthwaite House Hotel) and Clive Wilson (G.M. 4 star Lakeside Hotel Newby Bridge) together with Ronnie Mullin, graphic and web designer based in Kendal) got together 3 years ago to turn FIH from a sleepy consortium to a dynamic hotel marketing company.

The basic premise is to maintain a great website and produce a free to guests/take one A5 brochure (100,000 print run in 2008) which is distributed throughout the like minded but highly individual participating hotels.

Envisaging continued growth, FIH will be aiming to have 75 hotels in 2009.

Mike Bevans said: “In 2008, Fine Individual Hotels doubled the number of hotels from 25 to 50 and more growth is expected next year. With hotels well distributed in the North of England and Scotland like illustrious award winning hotel such as the stunning Ballathie House Hotel, near Perth; we have new hotels in the South such as the highly individual Hoste Arms in Burnham Market; the near the sea Millstream at Bosham; the top Devon country hotel Combe House, Gittisham; Cotswold’s famous Grapevine, Stow-on—the Wold; and the Castle at Conwy in Wales. We will continue to grow from strength to strength.”

Whether you are looking for Perthshire Hotels, Conwy Hotels, Devon Hotels, Cotswolds Hotels, Norfolk Hotels, or Chichester Hotels you will find the perfect venue on www.fihotels.com.

Number 34 is ideally situated for discovering the historic city of York. The Guest House is located in a quiet street approximately five minutes walk into the heart of York and all its superb attractions. Number 34 is a cosy, friendly, family run York Bed and Breakfast offering attractive, comfortable York guest house accommodation and delicious home cooked breakfasts to set you up for your day ahead exploring our beautiful city of York.

The award-winning 35-acre Langdale Estate set in heart of the English Lake District is a natural woodland haven with streams and tarns, dotted with massive millstones and other carefully preserved reminders of its history as a 19th century Lake District gunpowder works.

The Estate offers an impressive choice of Lake District hotels, Lake District self catering and Lake District Timeshare accommodation, together with two distinctly styled Lake District restaurants and bars, a traditional Lake District Pub plus extensive Leisure and Spa Facilities.

The Langdale Hotel and Country Club is one of the most unique hotels in the Lake District complete with 57 bedrooms, which located village-style, in historic properties around the estate, with just 5 situated in the main building. Each room is different - a number of special rooms have a 4-poster bed with double air bath. Others have a private balcony overlooking a stream. All rooms are en suite with whirlpool or air bath and are equipped with satellite TV, direct dial telephone and tea/coffee making facilities.