Things to do in North West England
60 places worth stopping for and 24 places to stay on a road trip through North West England.
See and do
- Lake
Lake · Buttermere
Buttermere
A flat 4.5 mile lakeshore walk with fells on every side.
- Lake
Lake · Wasdale
Wast Water
England's deepest lake, with the famous screes on the far side.
- Scenic drive
Scenic drive · Eskdale
Hardknott Pass
England's steepest road: hairpins, 30 percent gradients and big drops.
- Walk
Walk · GradbachHidden gem
Lud's Church
A mossy gritstone chasm in the woods, rumoured to be a Green Knight site.
- Walk
Walk · St BeesHidden gem
St Bees Head
Red sandstone sea cliffs with nesting seabirds and a clifftop path.
- Waterfall
Waterfall · Upper TeesdaleHidden gem
Cauldron Snout
A long tumble of cascades below Cow Green dam, reached on a wild moorland walk.
- Waterfall
Waterfall · Ullswater
Aira Force
A 20m drop through a wooded ravine, reached on an easy path from the car park.
- Lake
Lake · Coniston
Tarn Hows
A calm little tarn ringed by trees with a flat, buggy-friendly loop path.
- Lake
Lake · Ennerdale BridgeHidden gem
Ennerdale Water
The quiet lake: no motorboats, no through road, just wild valley.
- Lake
Lake · BamptonHidden gem
Haweswater Reservoir
A long, empty dam valley ending at a road-end car park under High Street.
- Lake
Lake · Great Langdale
Stickle Tarn
A steep half-day walk to a mountain tarn under Pavey Ark.
- Activity
Activity · Ravenglass
Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway
A 7 mile narrow-gauge steam railway into Eskdale, nicknamed 'La'al Ratty'.
- Wildlife
Wildlife · SilverdaleHidden gem
Leighton Moss
An RSPB reef-bed reserve for bitterns, marsh harriers and red deer.
- History
History · Barrow-in-FurnessHidden gem
Piel Castle
A ruined castle on a tiny island, reached by a short ferry.
- History
History · EskdaleHidden gem
Hardknott Roman Fort
Ruined Roman fort perched on a mountain shoulder, free to wander.
- History
History · Keswick
Castlerigg Stone Circle
A Neolithic stone circle in a field with a full ring of mountains around it.
- Viewpoint
Viewpoint · Windermere
Orrest Head
A 20 minute walk from Windermere station to a full lake panorama.
- Town
Town · DentdaleHidden gem
Dent
A cobbled village in a quiet valley with a brewery and a statue of a geologist.
- Scenic drive
Scenic drive · Borrowdale
Honister Pass
A steep, slate-walled pass between Borrowdale and Buttermere.
- Scenic drive
Scenic drive · Troutbeck
Kirkstone Pass
The highest road pass in the Lakes, with a famous pub at the top.
- Walk
Walk · Keswick
Cat Bells
A small fell with a big payoff: short, steep, and views over Derwentwater.
- Swimming hole
Swimming hole · Duddon ValleyHidden gem
Birks Bridge
A stone bridge over a dark, deep gorge pool in the quiet Duddon valley.
History · Little SalkeldHidden gem
Long Meg and Her Daughters
A big Bronze Age stone circle with one tall red outlier called Long Meg.
- Scenic drive
Scenic drive · Dunsop BridgeHidden gem
Trough of Bowland
A moorland pass across the Forest of Bowland, quiet and empty.
Roadside oddity · HeyshamHidden gem
Sunderland Point
A village at the end of a road that floods at high tide.
- Swimming hole
Swimming hole · FlashHidden gem
Three Shires Head
A packhorse bridge where three counties meet, with waterfall pools.
Walk · WildboarcloughHidden gem
Shutlingsloe
The 'Matterhorn of Cheshire': a small pointed hill with 360 degree views.
- History
History · ConistonHidden gem
Brantwood
John Ruskin's lakeside home on Coniston Water, with gardens and a café overlooking the lake.
- Walk
Walk · Grange in BorrowdaleHidden gem
Castle Crag
A short, steep wooded fell in Borrowdale with an Iron Age fort and a memorial on top.
- Lake
Lake · BorrowdaleHidden gem
Watendlath
A tiny hamlet with a tarn, a packhorse bridge and a tea room at the end of a narrow lane.
Activity · Borrowdale
Honister Slate Mine
England's last working slate mine, with underground tours, a via ferrata and a high wire.
- History
History · Near Sawrey
Hill Top
Beatrix Potter's 17th-century farmhouse, kept as she left it and full of detail from her books.
- Walk
Walk · MartindaleHidden gem
Hallin Fell
A small fell with a big payoff: steep little climb for wide views down Ullswater.
- Walk
Walk · ButtermereHidden gem
Rannerdale Knotts
A modest fell above Crummock Water, known for its carpet of bluebells in May.
- Lake
Lake · LoweswaterHidden gem
Loweswater
A small, quiet western lake with a gentle circular walk and a pub with its own brewery nearby.
- Scenic drive
Scenic drive · UlphaHidden gem
Duddon Valley
A winding, wooded valley road in the south-west Lakes with stone bridges and few crowds.
- Waterfall
Waterfall · SedberghHidden gem
Cautley Spout
A long stair of falls tumbling down the Howgill Fells, a short walk from the Sedbergh road.
- Scenic drive
Scenic drive · Little Langdale
Wrynose Pass
Steep, narrow mountain road between Little Langdale and the Duddon, ending at the Three Shire Stone.
- History
History · Newby BridgeHidden gem
Stott Park Bobbin Mill
A working Victorian bobbin mill run by steam power.
- History
History · Ambleside
Wray Castle
A Victorian Gothic castle on Windermere with a lakeside lawn.
- Beach
Beach · FormbyHidden gem
Formby
Sand dunes, pinewoods and red squirrels on the Sefton coast.
- Garden
Garden · Kendal
Levens Hall
A house with the world's oldest topiary garden, shaped in the 1690s.
- History
History · Barrow-in-FurnessHidden gem
Furness Abbey
Red sandstone abbey ruins in a quiet wooded valley.
Wildlife · Walney IslandHidden gem
South Walney
A nature reserve at the tip of Walney with seals, gulls and sand dunes.
- Lake
Lake · ElterwaterHidden gem
Elter Water
A shallow little lake between two Langdale villages, with a flat walk.
- History
History · Ravenglass
Muncaster Castle
A castle on a hill with big gardens, owls and fell views.
- Beach
Beach · AllonbyHidden gem
Allonby
A wide, windy Solway beach with huge sunsets and kite surfing.
- History
History · BramptonHidden gem
Lanercost Priory
A red sandstone priory beside Hadrian's Wall, built from Roman stone.
- History
History · Disley
Lyme Park
The grand house used as Pemberley, with a deer park and moors.
History · Congleton
Little Moreton Hall
A wonky black-and-white Tudor house with a moat.
- Swimming hole
Swimming hole · Skelwith BridgeHidden gem
Loughrigg Tarn
A small, gentle tarn with a flat path round it and decent swimming.
- History
History · RavenglassHidden gem
Ravenglass Roman Bath House
The standing walls of a Roman bath house, among the tallest in the north.
- Walk
Walk · BramptonHidden gem
Gelt Woods
A wooded gorge walk with sandstone cliffs, a Roman inscription and wildlife.
Town · SedberghHidden gem
Sedbergh
A small market town under the Howgills, known for books and hill walking.
- Roadside oddity
Roadside oddity · Dunsop BridgeHidden gem
Dunsop Bridge
A quiet village that once claimed to be the centre of Britain.
History · ColneHidden gem
Wycoller
A ruined hall, clapper bridge and Brontë links in a small country park.
- Roadside oddity
Roadside oddity · Blackpool
Blackpool Tower
The seaside icon, with a ballroom, circus and glass skywalk.
- History
History · CartmelHidden gem
Cartmel Priory
A 12th-century priory church in a pretty village known for its sticky toffee pudding.
- Museum
Museum · Holmes Chapel
Jodrell Bank Observatory
A giant radio telescope with a science centre, a world heritage site.
- Lake
Lake · EskdaleHidden gem
Devoke Water
A remote moorland tarn, the largest in the western fells.
Food stops
Pub · Wasdale HeadHidden gem
Wasdale Head Inn
The walkers' pub at the head of England's deepest valley.
Pub · Great LangdaleHidden gem
Old Dungeon Ghyll Hotel
A climbers' pub at the foot of the Langdale Pikes with a fire and a flagstone floor.
Pub · WhitewellHidden gem
Inn at Whitewell
A riverside inn in the heart of Bowland with a very good kitchen.
Pub · EskdaleHidden gem
Woolpack Inn
A friendly Eskdale pub near Hardknott with a garden and an inn brewery.
Bakery · Grasmere
Sarah Nelson's Grasmere Gingerbread
The tiny shop that has sold Grasmere gingerbread since 1854.
Bakery · Cartmel
Cartmel Village Shop
The village shop that put sticky toffee pudding on the map.
- Pub
Pub · Elterwater
Britannia Inn, Elterwater
Village-green pub in Langdale with an open fire, real ale and lunches for walkers.
- Café
Café · Dunsop BridgeHidden gem
Puddleducks Tea Room
A tearoom by the river in Dunsop Bridge, handy for walkers.
Distillery · Bassenthwaite
Lakes Distillery
A single-malt whisky distillery with a restaurant and tours.
Brewery · Staveley
Hawkshead Brewery
A craft brewery with a beer hall and kitchen in a converted barn.
- Pub
Pub · StaveleyHidden gem
Eagle and Child Inn, Staveley
Traditional freehouse with a riverside garden and Cumbrian ales on the Kendal road.
Places to stay
Campground · Wasdale Head
Wasdale Head National Trust Campsite
Mountain campsite under Scafell Pike, run by the National Trust.
Campground · Great Langdale
Great Langdale National Trust Campsite
Valley-floor camping at the base of the Langdale Pikes.
Campground · Windermere
Low Wray National Trust Campsite
Lakeshore camping on Windermere's quieter west side.
- Campground
Campground · Grange-in-BorrowdaleHidden gem
Hollows Farm Campsite
Small family farm camping in Borrowdale with a shop and cafe.
- Campground
Campground · ButtermereHidden gem
Syke Farm Campsite
Farm campsite in Buttermere, with the farm's own ice cream.
Campground · EskdaleHidden gem
Fisherground Farm
Farm campsite beside the Ravenglass and Eskdale steam railway.
- Campground
Campground · Patterdale
Side Farm Campsite
Lakeside camping on Ullswater, at the foot of Helvellyn.
- Campground
Campground · SizerghHidden gem
Low Sizergh Barn campsite
Small farm campsite beside a farm shop and café near Kendal, with a gallery over the milking parlour.
- Campground
Campground · WatermillockHidden gem
Cove Caravan and Camping Park
A small, quiet site in the hills above Ullswater with a dog-walking meadow and red squirrels.
- Lodge
Lodge · LoweswaterHidden gem
Kirkstile Inn
A 16th-century inn at the foot of Mellbreak, with its own brewery and 11 bedrooms.
- Holiday park
Holiday park · Pooley Bridge
Park Foot Caravan and Camping Park
Big lakeside park on Ullswater with tent fields, a restaurant and bar, boats and bike hire.
- Campground
Campground · Keswick
Castlerigg Farm Camping and Caravan Site
A hill-farm campsite above Keswick with 360-degree views of the fells and lakes.
- Lodge
Lodge · Barngates
Drunken Duck Inn
Small, characterful inn with 11 rooms and excellent food above Hawkshead.
- Campground
Campground · Rydal
Rydal Hall campsite
Woodland tent pitches, pods and cabins in the grounds of a church-run estate between Ambleside and Grasmere.
- Glamping
Glamping · KeswickHidden gem
Long Valley Yurts, Skiddaw
Three yurts on a quiet campsite below Skiddaw in the northern fells, with ospreys nearby and nine Wainwrights from the door.
- Campground
Campground · Ullswater
The Quiet Site
Ullswater campsite with a no-noise reputation and its own pub.
Campground · BorrowdaleHidden gem
Seathwaite Farm Campsite
A simple farm field campsite in one of England's wettest valleys.
- Campground
Campground · TroutbeckHidden gem
Gill Head Farm Camping
Working-farm campsite below Blencathra with hardstanding pitches, camping pods and pets welcome.
- Campground
Campground · CaldbeckHidden gem
Wallace Lane Farm Campsite
Small farm campsite near Caldbeck in the northern fells: 10 serviced pitches, 10 tent pitches, campfires allowed.
- Campground
Campground · Keswick
Castlerigg Hall Camping and Touring
Hillside farm campsite above Keswick with a shop, campers' kitchen and fell views, and a short walk to Walla Crag.
- Holiday park
Holiday park · Pooley Bridge
Park Foot Holiday Park, Ullswater
Big lakeside touring and camping park on Ullswater with a bar, shop and three camping fields, a mile from Pooley Bridge.
- Campground
Campground · WitherslackHidden gem
Moss Howe Farm Campsite
Small farm campsite in the quiet Winster Valley, with a farm shop, e-bike hire and a pub a short walk away.
- Glamping
Glamping · GrasmereHidden gem
The Yan Lookouts glamping, Grasmere
Two high-spec pods on Broadrayne Farm looking up to Helm Crag, with a two-night minimum and any-day arrival.
- Campground
Campground · Nether WasdaleHidden gem
Church Stile Farm Campsite, Wasdale
Big, level woodland campsite in Nether Wasdale on a sheep farm, with views to the Screes and the beach not far away.
Plan the drive, not just the stops
Roadtrip works out what the drive costs in fuel for your car, splits it into days with the best stops and places to sleep, and finds the cheapest fuel on the way.
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