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Scottish Outlander

A Lifestyle Blog from Lindsay McWilliams

4 December, 2014

Lakeside, The Lake District

4 December, 2014

In November we headed to The Lake District to celebrate John’s birthday. After researching prices in Windermere we decided to stay outside the tourist hotspot where prices are a little friendlier! We opted for Lakeside, a tiny village at the South end of Lake Windermere and stayed at Landing Cottage Guest House, a steal at £75 for the night. The main things that attracted us to the area were the Lakes Aquarium and the fact we could use the cruise boats to visit Bowness on Windermere and we weren’t disappointed.

After getting a little bit lost trying to find the B&B (thank goodness for GPS coordinates!) we dropped our bags off and headed out to find some lunch. On the shores of Windermere we found Lakeside Hotel. Lakeside Hotel is a beautiful 4 star hotel and spa that would be a wonderful place for a relaxing retreat if you had the spare pennies. Knowing the restaurant would be pricey we headed to the bar where we chose our sandwiches and settled down next to the open fire. The food was lovely but the price reflected our surroundings and the bill gave us a bit of a shock!

Sandwiches at Lakeside Hotel

Sandwiches at Lakeside Hotel

Chips at Lakeside Hotel

Open Fire at Lakeside Hotel

Still a little dazed after paying over £8 for a small glass of wine we made our way to the Lakes Aquarium. The aquarium is one of the nicest I’ve visited recently and features much more than marine animals. Tickets are just £5.95 if you buy in advance online or a couple of pounds extra if you buy on the day.

We wondered around looking at the fish, reptiles and mammals.

Otter at Lakes Aquarium

Otters at Lakes Aquarium

Tortoise at Lakes Aquarium

Fish at Lakes Aquarium

Lakes Aquarium

Ants at Lakes Aquarium

Ants at Lakes Aquarium

Chameleon at Lakes Aquarium

Monkey at Lakes Aquarium

Tunnel at Lakes Aquarium

And we spotted an unexpected visitor who was also staying at Lakeside for the weekend!

Thomas The Tank Steam Engine

The next day we applied for a local resident card with Windermere Lake Cruises which gives the local community half price fares during the winter season and 20% off the rest of the time. All you need is a bill with your home address on it and a LA or CA postcode. We applied in person at the ticket office but you can apply by post. Armed with our discount cards we bought a couple of very cheap return tickets from Lakeside to Bowness.

Waiting for  a trip on Windermere Lake Cruises

We enjoyed the sail and hopped off for some lunch and a walk around the town before jumping back on board.

Lake Windermere

Bowness on Windermere

It’s no secret I love boats, add wine to the mix and you’re onto a winner.

Lakes Cruise

We have such a wonderful weekend and finished it off by racing to the supermarket for the one thing we had forgotten, a birthday cake!

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  • Aira Force Waterfall WalkAira Force Waterfall Walk
  • Bowness on WindermereBowness on Windermere

Posted by Lindsay McWilliams 12 Comments
Filed Under: Adventures, Cumbria, England Tagged: Cumbria, Lake District

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Lindsay Kelso
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Hello, I'm Lindsay! I'm a thirty something year old Scottish outlander living in the beautiful county of Cumbria and sharing my adventures in Scotland, England and beyond. Click here if you'd like to know more.

Views are my own and do not reflect those of my employer. Any comments on financial matters are based on my own experience and should not be taken as advice.

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