Culture Trip's Guide to the Lake District

If you’re staying at the Wayfarers, on the edge of the Lake District, the likelihood is you won’t be spending much time here. Catering to scores of adventurers each week, the hostel is a no-frills go-to for hikers and cyclists. An ideal post-activity crash pad, this family-run residence is kitted with lockers, a drying room and bike hire and storage – expect to see acres of Lycra thanks to the Coast-to-Coast route, which runs through the Lake District.

Fluffy pampas grass sprouts up at the front of the Waterhead, a quaint hotel owned by English Lakes, a family-run group specialising in lakeside accommodation. Suffice to say, they know what they’re doing, as the ethereal Windermere can be seen from all Classic rooms with windows running almost ceiling to floor. Grasmere gingerbread is a Cumbrian delicacy you’ll find in every room; paired with the warming copper tones that lend an autumnal quality to the interiors, it just begs to be enjoyed with a steaming Ringtons tea or better still, a glass of Baileys.

Tree-lined land stretches out in every direction, lending a fairytale quality to this country-house hotel, which comprises 14 acres (5.7ha) of private woodland and a tarn with two rowboats. Starting life as a summer house in the early 20th century, Linthwaite is all about escapism and an ideal retreat for nature-starved urbanites. The gardens are manicured to Stepford Wives standards, but for an unrulier landscape you need only step outside to see hills, mountains and Lake Windermere skirting the hotel’s hilltop position.