Nestling in the Buttermere, Loweswater, Crummock Water and Lorton Valley in the English Lake District, Scale Hill Cottages has provided accommodation for over two centuries. Situated in its own grounds with an attractive garden overlooking the valley and the River Cocker we now provide Loweswater self catering cottage accommodation from February to December inclusively.

Just eight miles from Keswick and Cockermouth Scale Hill, once a famous coaching inn and now a family home, offers a dramatic location for a peaceful escape or a family adventure. Watch the red squirrels in the garden, wander through the woods to Crummock Water, conquer local Wainwrights, take a rowing boat out on the lake, explore the Cumbrian coast - enjoy life in a natural area of beauty.

The Buttermere, Loweswater and Lorton Valley lies in the North West corner of English Lakeland, with its western end opening out towards the coastal plain and thus gathering milder weather than most of the Lake District.

The three lakes carpet the Valley floor interspersed with the green fields of the sheep farms and the broad-leaved woods, and all are surrounded by the fells, ranging from Low Fell in the west beside Loweswater Lake and Grasmoor and Mellbreak guarding Crummock Water, to Red Pike and Haystacks over Buttermere, whilst Great Gable watches over all from the South East.



Cartmel is a medieval village situated on the edge of the southern Lake District. The 12th century Cartmel Priory typifies this village both in architecture and history. It is still used for worship today as it has been for over 800 years and attracts thousands of visitors each year.

The other main attraction for visitors to Cartmel is the racecourse. With the first recorded race said to have taken place on the mid 1800’s, Cartmel races continues to grow in stature and popularity year on year. The creation of a new grandstand, with the back drop of the beautiful southern Lake District coupled with catering to rival any top race event has really put Cartmel on the map.

Cartmel is very much becoming a gastronomic destination. Cartmel and its surrounding villages have some of the best examples of Lake District gastronomy in the whole of Cumbria and the Lake District. Even though many of the restaurants and public houses are located within historic buildings, the food served is right in the 21st century using the finest locally sourced produce that is found in an abundance in the south Lakeland area.

Cartmel Sticky Toffee Pudding is one of the most famous exports from Cartmel. The pudding is now sold all over the United Kingdom and even world with high class restaurants in London serving this still handmade in Cartmel pudding.

With its top quality food, beautiful historical buildings, race course and spectacular scenery, it’s not hard to believe that Cartmel attracts a cosmopolitan visitor. Luckily, Cartmel offers some stunning luxury Lake District self catering properties including Ford House in Cartmel which sleeps up to 10 people. When attending the races, what better place to stay in than a beautiful Grade II listed manor house or a beautiful double-fronted period property in Cartmel.

Nearby attractions also include Holker Hall (a stately home with lovely gardens and grounds and a cafe, Cark-in-Cartmel), the Lakeland Motor Museum (In addition to vintage and classic motors, the museum now features of faithfully recreated period shop fronts and also has a themed gift shop. It is now located at its new site in Backbarrow, on the main A590) and Brantwood (an historic house & gardens which used to be the home of John Ruskin with a shop, café and terrace on the east side of Coniston Water).



Nestling in southern Cumbria – the Lake District are the hidden treasures of Cark-in-Cartmel and Allithwaite. Both locations providing access to the Lake District fells and Morecambe Bay.

Cark-in-Cartmel and Allithwaite are both located at the southern end of the Cartmel Valley and are classic ‘working’ Lakeland villages. This area is beautifully quiet without being remote and has a gentle pace of life. With its location so close to Morecambe Bay this area brings a milder climate than the rest of the Lake District.

The medieval village of Cartmel lies just 1½ miles north and is the oldest and most picturesque village in South Lakeland. The 12th century priory escaped destruction during the Dissolution of Henry VIII and remains one of the finest ecclesiastical buildings in the north of England. The ancient village square is home to two good pubs and is a lovely place to sit and enjoy a drink and watch the world go by. There are another two good pubs just around the corner to visit when staying in Cumbrian cottages.

Cartmel Valley is a gentle, undulating landscape of lush green fields, rolling hills, leafy lanes and tranquil forests. The woodlands are an ideal base for easy access of the whole of the Lake District, Morecambe Bay, the rolling sand dunes of the Cumbrian coast, the Forrest of Bowland and the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

Walkers can put away their car keys as there are dozens of walks from their Lake District self catering cottage. The ancient Cistercian Way pass through Cark village and links up to all major walking routes in the Lake District. The Cumbrian Coastal Way also goes through both Cark and Allithwaite and provides spectacular coastal and fell walking for mile after mile. Morecambe Bay, with its vast areas of sand and marshes is a popular haunt for bird watchers, as is nearby Leighton Moss bird sanctuary. The Bay and the Cumbrian coast are great for windsurfing, with clear winds from the south.

If walking is not on the agenda when staying in one of these Lake District cottages then a visit to Holker Hall is a must. Holker Hall is Cumbria’s premier stately home, the home of Lord & Lady Cavendish. Residents and visitors of the village are granted permission to walk freely around the extensive parklands stocked with herds of deer and rare breed cattle and sheep. They also have a farm shop on site where produce from the estate can be purchased.

And finally, for families, a 10 minute drive north leads you to the nostalgic Haverthwaite to Lakeside Steam Railway. This connects to the awaiting Lake Windermere steamers and cruise boats that travel the full length of England’s longest lake where stops can be made at Waterhead (for Ambleside) or Bowness-in-Windermere.



Goosemire Cottages, the family owned and run self catering accommodation company based in Kendal, Cumbria are pleased to announce the launch of four new cottages for 2009.

The new cottages are in four different locations all offering different forms and sizes of accommodation. The first, Rosegarth Cottage at Newby in the Eden Valley. The second Lake District cottage is Edenfold Cottage, Bolton near Appleby. The third cottage is Pheasant Cottage in the Eden Valley and the fourth of the Lake District cottages is Stonegarth also in Newby.

These cottages are the latest additions to their already 35 strong cottage portfolio. This amount of cottages lead to the need for a new website which was put live last year and which enables the visitor to check the live availability of each cottage. It also gives clear information on each particular property with either “available”, “booked” or “a please phone” status. If one of the cottages is “available”, indicated under the availability status is the price for that week. This enables the visitor to know instantly the cost and eliminates the need to telephone or email for a price.

Goosemire Cottages are a small family run agency offering holiday cottage accommodation in the Lake District, UK (with just a few exceptions) an all-inclusive rental price. Their limited overheads mean low prices and they pride themselves on their value for money approach. There are open all year round and offer out of season or last minute breaks. To help you relax, Goosemire Cottages adopts a “nothing is too much trouble” approach, ensuring a welcoming, informed and personal service. On arrival you will find your cottage carefully prepared, to give your holiday a perfect start. In fact from the point of your initial enquiry onwards they guarantee they will give both you and your holiday the warm friendly attention deserved.

Goosemire Cottages have available over 39 traditional self-catering holiday homes for discerning visitors (Ranging from 1 to 7 bedrooms, sleeping up to 10). Most are rustic 17th or 18th Century Lake District self catering cottages or lovely barn conversions, where antiquity and modern comforts have been beautifully combined. The atmosphere and idiosyncrasies of each Lake District cottage property are reflected on our website, and while some maybe more luxuriously appointed than others, all are carefully prepared and maintained.

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Switzerland is a landlocked alpine country in Western Europe with roughly seven and a half million people and an area of just over forty thousand kilometres square. The country is made up of twenty six states called cantons and it contains three global cities, Geneva, Basel and Zürich. Switzerland is one of the richest countries in the world by per capita gross domestic product, plus Zürich and Geneva have respectively been ranked as having the first and second highest quality of life in the world.

It is bordered by Germany to the north, France to the west, Italy to the south and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland has a long history of neutrality and it has not been at war since 1815. The country hosts many international organizations, including the Red Cross, the World Trade Organization and one of the U.N.s two European offices. However, it is not a member of the European Union. Switzerland is multilingual and has four national languages - German, French, Italian and Romansh.

When it comes to places to stay, there is a great choice of Switzerland accommodation available including serviced accommodation such as hotels and bed and breakfasts, plus Switzerland self catering accommodation such as simple hostels, or perhaps a luxury Switzerland apartment.

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