LAKE DISTRICT HOTELS

NORTHERN ENGLAND

YORKSHIRE • LANCASHIRE NORTHUMBERLAND • LAKE DISTRICT

THE LAKE DISTRICT and the Yorkshire Dales are the areas of Northern England which have the largest number of visitors and the greatest concentration of places to stay. Windermere, in particular, offers a bewildering choice; we recommend the best and most secluded. But don’t overlook the rest of this region, which stretches north from the mouth of the River Humber to the Scottish borders: not least Northumberland and the North Yorkshire Moors for their rugged beauty, nor the cathedral cities of Durham and York. Wherever our entries are situated, they range from luxurious hideaways to plain, no-nonsense inns and are often in dramatic settings, perfect for walkers and lovers of the great outdoors.

Hotel Linthwaite House

Glorious lake views and fine grounds. A consummate, pampering hotel. Crook Rd, Bowness-on-Windermere, Cumbria LA23 3JA.

Yorkshire Hotels – Hotel Crathorne Hall

Edwardian stately home, now part of the Hand Picked Hotels group, set in wooded grounds overlooking River Leven. Crathorne, Yarm, North. Yorkshire TS15 0AR.

Foresters Arms

 Atmospheric pub in a stone-built Dales village. Noted for its good food. NCarlton-in-Coverdale, Leyburn, North Yorkshire DL8 4BB

Hotel Lindeth Fell

Large mature gardens glowing with azaleas and rhododendrons in spring, tremendous views, and a warm, courteous welcome from Pat and Diana Kennedy at this comfortable country house. Wood-panelled hall, two sitting rooms, and pleasingly decorated bedrooms. Drinks and tea can be taken on the terrace. Bowness-on-Windermere, Cumbria LA23 3JP .

Hotel Georgian Town House

Town-centre Georgian house decorated with flair (and a profusion of stencils). Breakfasts are taken in the conservatory. 10-11 Crossgate, Durham, Co. Durham DH1 4PS.

Hotel Farlam Hall

Though mainly Victorian, the roots of this elegant Borders house are Elizabethan. Set in rolling countryside, it is beautifully furnished and imbued with a traditional, discreet atmosphere. In the dining room, superb dinners (included in price of room) range from plain country dishes to mild extravagances. Brampton, Cumbria CA8 2NG.

Cumbria Hotels – Hotel Hipping Hall

Guests can eat communally in the splendid beamed Great Hall with minstrels’ gallery. After a day on the fells, sink into sofas around a wood-burning stove at the other end of the Hall. Bedrooms are spacious. Child-friendly. Pets allowed in the cottages. Cowan Bridge, Kirkby Lonsdale, Cumbria LA6 2JJ.

North Yorkshire  Hotels – Star Inn

Michelin-starred restaurant with accommodation across the road in Cross House Lodge and Black Eagle Cottages. Outstanding. Harome, nr Helmsley, North Yorkshire YO62 5JE.

Hotel Headlam Hall

Creeper-covered Jacobean house in formal gardens; popular for functions. Headlam, Gainford, Darlington, Co. Durham DL2 3HA.

Hotel 42

The Calls The converted riverside corn mill is the place to stay in Leeds. Stylishly contemporary, amusingly different, it retains original features such as beams, girders, bare brick walls and the odd hoist. Bedrooms and bathrooms are wellequipped. At weekends, some meals available by means of room service only. 42 The Calls, Leeds, West Yorkshire LS2 7EW.

Hotel Winder Hall

Beautiful manor house with a 17thcentury façade and many period features. Fine bedrooms; good food. Low Lorton, Cockermouth, Cumbria CA13 9UP.

Harrogate Hotels -Hotel Boar’s Head

Opened in the late 1980s by the present residents of Ripley Castle, Sir Thomas and Lady Ingilby, this former inn has elegant, even sumptuous, interiors, augmented by ancestral portraits and ornaments. The candlelit dining room is romantic, and the cooking is taken very seriously. Ripley Castle Estate, Harrogate HG3 3AY.

Romaldkirk Hotels – Hotel Rose and Crown

This thriving former coaching inn, set on the village inn, is noted for the modish English food. Eat in the wood-panelled, candlelit dining room, then withdraw to the rustic bar, with log fires, old photographs and much brass. Courtyard rooms are modern; those in the main building more characterful. Romaldkirk, Barnard Castle, Co. Durham DL12 9EB

Cumbria hotels – Hotel Sharrow Bay

For more than 50 years, Sharrow Bay has been famed for its food, service, luxury and lakeside setting. It claims to have been the world’s first country house hotel, and to have the finest views in the Lake District. Nigel Lightburn, involved with the hotel for more than 30 years, is now in charge. New garden wing recently added. Ullswater, Penrith, Cumbria CA10 2LZ

Hotel Malmaison

The converted warehouse is one in a chain of hotels representing excellent value. Slick rooms are equipped with all the latest requisites. 104 Quayside, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear NE1 3DX.

Hotel Ees Wyke

In a glorious spot above Esthwaite Water; grand views. Old-fashioned in the best sense, and lovingly cared for. Welcoming owners. Near Sawrey, Hawkshead, Ambleside, Cumbria LA22 0JZ

Hotel Inn at Whitewell

Just the right note is struck at this mellow Forest of Bowland inn. The owners ensure a relaxed, unstuffy atmosphere, extending an equally warm welcome to adults, children and pets. The decoration is full of good taste, particularly in the bedrooms – some of which have peat fires. Most have videos, CD players and impressive bathrooms. Fly fishing. Whitewell, Clitheroe, Lancashire BB7 3AT

Hotel Gilpin Lodge

Notable for its high standards and attention to detail, Victorian Gilpin Lodge presents a fresh, white, flower-bedecked exterior. Its immaculate, cosy yet smart interior is embellished with many ornaments and flower arrangements. Some bedrooms have four-posters. Dinner included in price of room. Crook Rd, Windermere, Cumbria LA23 3NE

Hotel River House

Characterful hotel, set beside a tidal estuary. Two hooded 19th-century baths. Skippool Creek, Thornton-le-Fylde, nr Blackpool, Lancashire FY5 5LF.

Hotel Manor House

Late-Victorian house in tranquil position. Elaborate food; long wine list. Northlands, Walkington, East Yorkshire HU17 8RT.

Hotel Storrs Hall

A change of ownership a while back gave a new and opulent lease of life to this spectacularly positioned Georgian pile, built to look like an Italian villa. Beautifully proportioned rooms are filled with antiques, paintings, rare books and model ships. Storrs Park, Bowness-on-Windermere, Cumbria LA23 3LG.

Hotel Middlethorpe Hall

The magnificent William III house, once home of diarist Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, is now part of Historic House Hotels, which transforms important buildings into places to stay. One feels special just walking in, yet the atmosphere is not intimidating. Set in large garden and parkland not far from centre of York. Bishopthorpe Rd, York YO23 2GB

Hotel Samling

Luxurious country house hotel with wonderful views over Lake Windermere. NAmbleside Road, Windermere, Cumbria LA23 1LR.

Hotel Winteringham Fields

A 16th-century manor house, whose owners have created an alluring formula: highly praised food, lovely bedrooms. Winteringham, North Lincolnshire DN15 9PF.

Cumbria hotels – Hotel White Moss House

Renowned for its cuisine, with pretty bedrooms (two in a secluded cottage). In the Wordsworth family until the 1930s. Rydal Water, Grasmere, Cumbria LA22 9SE.