Cumbria calling
Postman Pat: The Movie hits cinema screens this May, a feature-length lm voiced by the likes of David Tennant and Ronan Keating. While Pat’s stomping – or is that stamping? – ground of Greendale might be ctional, it is inspired by the real valley of Longsleddale near Kendal, in beautiful Cumbria.
For ‘outdoorsy’ types, there’s a huge choice of walks and hikes, gardens to visit, and lake cruises to enjoy. Cumbria has many picturesque villages and towns, and I spent many a happy hour pootling around the shops in Keswick, Windermere and Ambleside in particular.
There’s plenty of organised sightseeing too, of course. Among popular attractions there’s Beatrix Potter’s home, Hill Top, near Ambleside; Lake District Wildlife Park, Bassenthwaite; Dove Cottage and the Wordsworth Museum on the edge of Grasmere, and the popular tourist attraction Lakes Aquarium, Ulverston.
New places to visit this year will include Cumbria’s first whisky distillery, opening this summer in a former Victorian farm. It will distil its own Cumbrian malt whisky and gin; there will also be a visitor centre, with distillery tours, a cafe, restaurant and shop.
Kirklinton Hall & Gardens, currently a 17th-century ruin, is being restored, but in the meantime will host outdoor events in its grounds, including festivals and a grand opera in the summer. And for the children, later this year a Go Ape Zip Trek Adventure will open at Grizedale Forest – seven tandem zip lines covering 4.5km, allowing them to fly above the forest floor.
The Lake District stages festivals and special events throughout the year, including: Words By The Water, Theatre By The Lake, Keswick, 7 to 16 March; Holker Garden Festival, Holker Hall, Cark, 30 May to 1 June; Taste Cumbria Food Festival 2014, Cockermouth, 27 to 28 September, and the Great Northern Cheese Festival 2014, in Rheged, Penrith, 21 September.
Cumbria Tourism: 01539- 822222, www.golakes.co.uk
Bassenthwaite Lakeside Lodges in the heart of the Lake District National Park, near Keswick on the shores of idyllic Bassenthwaite Lake, is the ideal place to stay for peace and privacy, especially if the whole family is going away together.
The park has 56 very comfortable, well-equipped lodges (some pet friendly), some privately owned, a few for sale, and others for hire for short breaks of a week or two, some of which are located at the water’s edge.
Everything you need in a holiday home is supplied, from bed linen and towels to TV and washing machine. Each lodge has a timber deck with wonderful views, and a barbecue; some even have their own hot tub – the perfect place to unwind after a day’s hiking, sightseeing or shopping. Bassenthwaite Lakeside Lodges cost from £265 for a short break, rising to £1,345 for a lakeside lodge with hot tub for a week.
01768-776641, www.blll.co.uk
For ‘outdoorsy’ types, there’s a huge choice of walks and hikes, gardens to visit, and lake cruises to enjoy. Cumbria has many picturesque villages and towns, and I spent many a happy hour pootling around the shops in Keswick, Windermere and Ambleside in particular.
There’s plenty of organised sightseeing too, of course. Among popular attractions there’s Beatrix Potter’s home, Hill Top, near Ambleside; Lake District Wildlife Park, Bassenthwaite; Dove Cottage and the Wordsworth Museum on the edge of Grasmere, and the popular tourist attraction Lakes Aquarium, Ulverston.
New places to visit this year will include Cumbria’s first whisky distillery, opening this summer in a former Victorian farm. It will distil its own Cumbrian malt whisky and gin; there will also be a visitor centre, with distillery tours, a cafe, restaurant and shop.
Kirklinton Hall & Gardens, currently a 17th-century ruin, is being restored, but in the meantime will host outdoor events in its grounds, including festivals and a grand opera in the summer. And for the children, later this year a Go Ape Zip Trek Adventure will open at Grizedale Forest – seven tandem zip lines covering 4.5km, allowing them to fly above the forest floor.
The Lake District stages festivals and special events throughout the year, including: Words By The Water, Theatre By The Lake, Keswick, 7 to 16 March; Holker Garden Festival, Holker Hall, Cark, 30 May to 1 June; Taste Cumbria Food Festival 2014, Cockermouth, 27 to 28 September, and the Great Northern Cheese Festival 2014, in Rheged, Penrith, 21 September.
Cumbria Tourism: 01539- 822222, www.golakes.co.uk
Bassenthwaite Lakeside Lodges in the heart of the Lake District National Park, near Keswick on the shores of idyllic Bassenthwaite Lake, is the ideal place to stay for peace and privacy, especially if the whole family is going away together.
The park has 56 very comfortable, well-equipped lodges (some pet friendly), some privately owned, a few for sale, and others for hire for short breaks of a week or two, some of which are located at the water’s edge.
Everything you need in a holiday home is supplied, from bed linen and towels to TV and washing machine. Each lodge has a timber deck with wonderful views, and a barbecue; some even have their own hot tub – the perfect place to unwind after a day’s hiking, sightseeing or shopping. Bassenthwaite Lakeside Lodges cost from £265 for a short break, rising to £1,345 for a lakeside lodge with hot tub for a week.
01768-776641, www.blll.co.uk