Lake District National Park Travel Forum

I am looking at spending a week in the Lakes at Easter. I would like to stay in a cottage if possible, but not sure which part of the Lakes, although Ambleside looks nice. Has anyone got any helpful tips on how/where is the best place to book them or any general information about the Ambleside area.

I just stayed in the Lakes with friends for a week in September. We rented a cottage in Keswick at Burnside Park, highly recommended. The website does have Ambleside rentals as well so I've copied the URL for that location.
Here it is!

http://www.cumbrian-cottages.co.uk/framambl.htm

If you're not stuck on Ambleside I can really recommend Keswick. Loads of good pubs and restaurants and fantastic hiking from town.

Another good site for finding B&B's throughout the UK is www.smoothhound.co.uk. They have lots of good listings. Googling Lake District England will also bring up lots of useful informatioin about that area.

Ambleside is one of my favourite towns in the Lake District, and it's a pretty good base for getting to other parts of the area. It has some nice shops and restaurants if you want a break from walking. Coniston is also a lovely village, as is Grasmere (try the local gingerbread!), they are quite a bit smaller than Ambleside. Windermere is larger, but gets very crowded - you'll get a lot more day-trippers there over Easter than in the other places.

I have used Smoothhound too and can recommend it for finding b&b accommodation. Hoseasons (http://www.hoseasons.co.uk) also have a nice range of self-catering cottages.

Have a wonderful time!

You can't go wrong wherever you stay in the Lakes. If you like it busy, then try Windermere (gets very crowded at times) Ambleside is a beautiful town & a great base for exploring the Lakes. Grasmere Gingerbread is a must & try to visit Pooley Bridge on Ullswater.

Got to agree about Grasmere...I liked Conniston as a base....central to everything and got a nice small village feel to it.

all good suggestions here...Coniston has a cosy feel to it whereas Keswick has more options for hiking and eateries.

Hi
I would also recommend keswick ---This is right in the centre of the lake District with great walks starting here -- you are also in striking distance of Scafell Pike -- England's highest mountain !!! and it is far less touristy that Ambleside / Windermere.
My cousin has a cottage to let on her farm -- info and pics on my cumbria page -- Ghyll brow farm -- I Garurentee that she will give you a warm welcome, Any further help I can give then please don't hesitate to drop me a line -- Good Luck and happy travels -- Rob
PS -- you might find it difficult to find a cottage over the Easter weekend now -- a lot of the good ones get booked up a long time in advance so best to start looking Soon !!!!

If you don't mind the crowds any of the afore mentioned places are nice. Remember Easter is the first real holiday of the year here and that tourists will be a plenty.
A quieter and I think more beautiful area is the Eskdale Valley in the west of the Lake District.
Hope this is of some help,
NickandChris.