Keswick and the North Lakes

Keswick has become the major centre for tourism in the north lakes. This pretty market town offers a wide range of attractions for visitors, from shops, coffee houses and restaurants to galleries, museums and other attractions. A street market takes place twice a week in the town square surrounding the historic Moot Hall, and is the location for an annual Christmas Fayre & Market, which is a popular event for vistors and residents.

The highly successful Theatre by the Lake is less than a 5 min stroll from West View, the north shores of Derwent Water immediately beyond, with its boat landing stages, and a little further is Friars Crag, from where Ruskin described the view as one of the three most beautiful scenes in Europe.

Beyond Derwent Water the steep sided valley of Borrowdale, running some ten miles to it's sources high in the Scafell mountains (977m), must be one of the most beautiful and exciting landscapes in the British Isles.

For the active there is mini-golf just a few yards from our front door, tennis courts in Fitz Park, a climbing wall - and a short drive away is Keswick's 18 hole golf course in a most attractive location overlooked by Blencathra. There are cycle hire facilities in the town, and boats may be hired on the Derwent Water Lake Shore. The Keswick Launch offers cruises on the lake, as well as providing a 'bus service' for walkers attracted to the fells on the Western side of Derwent Water.

We have a wide selection of maps and guidebooks that you are welcome to borrow during your stay. You may find the Wainwrights rather quaint these days, but the route descriptions once you get a few hundred yards from the road are still pretty good. We can help with walking routes, drive tours, cycling and running trials.

A short drive away you can explore other delights of the Lake District, such as Buttermere or Crummock Water, and a little further are the the Cumbrian coast or the north Pennines, Hadrian's Wall and the Scottish borders.