A Day At Lake Windermere

To begin our long bank holiday weekend, my husband and I decided to take a three hour drive up to the Lake District yesterday and check out Lake Windermere for the first time. Both of us had heard so many great things about the Lake District but neither of us have had chance to go before.

Lake Windermere is England's largest lake standing at ten and a half miles long and 219 feet deep and features five very traditional and pretty lake side villages - Ambleside, Waterhead, Bowness-on-Windermere, Lakeside and Windermere itself. The lake is really easy to get around as there are many modes of transport all offering tours not only just round Windermere, but many lakes within the Lake District. There's a hop on, hop off with commentary about the history of Windermere and the lakes, ferry trips to other neighbouring lakes, regular buses and trains and of course boat cruises - ones where you can hop on and off at different islands or ones where you can sit back and enjoy 45 minutes admiring the beautiful scenery. 

We arrived at Lake Windermere at around 10'o clock in the morning and parked our car in a car park at Windermere Village. Windermere Village is approximately a 1 mile walk to the actual lake, but it's a great spot for finding parking and there's a higher chance of finding a car parking spot further from the Lake in peak times such as Bank Holidays. The bus was only £2 each to the lakeside and during our little ride, we were able to listen to the commentary and learn a little bit more about the place we were visiting.

Once we stepped off the bus, I was really taken aback by how beautiful Lake Windermere is and the amount of things you can do. I expected it to be rather quiet with people just walking their dogs and the odd sailboat. Instead it was an area filled with tourists from all over the globe, a lake that housed dozens of 40ft yachts and it was hard not to fall in love with all the quirky, independent shops in the tranquil, yet bustling villages.

During our time at Lake Windermere, we ate ice-cream, walked along the marina and even rented a little boat and had our own little adventure on the water. The boat we hired was £30 for up to six people for an hour, which was more than affordable and a great way to really appreciate the views around Windermere. I had such a wonderful day and my husband and I are definitely looking to head back in the summer and spend a long weekend there or a few mores days so we can really explore the area. This year I promised myself I would do more 'UK Staycations' and so far I'm learning a lot about the country I live in and have realised over the years that there are so many places I have been missing out on, the Lake District being one of them.

Have you been to the Lake District before?