Ultimate Full-Day Lake District Tour: 10 Lakes, Amazing Scenery & Lake Cruise

At almost eight miles, this is the second longest of the lakes, with a dramatic serpentine shape overlooked by soaring fells, none higher than the challenging reaches of Helvellyn. The leafy shores are stippled with woods of oak, birch and hazel – one of the best examples of pre-plantation Lakeland...

Shimmering and sparkling just south of the market town of Keswick, you will find Derwentwater. Studded with islands and craggy fells, this is undoubtably one of our prettiest lakes. Known as “the Queen” of the English Lakes, your drive along the shoreline you will glimpse the evocatively named Cat Bells...

You can tell from the meaning of the name, “the lake by the dairy pastures” that Buttermere is something special. Even by the high standards of the Lake District, you will find the scenery around here breathtaking. Ringed by crags and peaks, Buttermere is surrounded by some of the most...

Way back in the ancient geological past, this lake was connected to Buttermere but since then, they have been separated by a narrow half mile strip of lush, green meadowland. Crummock Water is almost twice as long and half as deep again than her sibling body of water with fewer...

From the viewpoint of Surprise View, you will see Bassenthwaite sparkling in the distance. Later in the day, you will get closer for a photo stop looking down on impressive views of the lake and its surrounding scenery. This is the northernmost of the major stretches of water with its...

As you will travel south, along the shores of the attractive, tree-fringed expanse of water at Thirlmere, you will hear the sad tale of the villages of Armboth and Wythburn, now lost, deep below these waters. The story is a fascinating one of wealth, industry and the might of the...

Cradled snugly in the Vale of Grasmere lies the lake of the same name, ringed almost completely by shapely fells and forever associated with the poet William Wordsworth. As we look out over the water, you will discover that it was here William, his sister Dorothy and brother John would...

You will get great views from the road of this reedy little lake, one of the prettiest on a summer’s morning and even on a frosty winter’s day. Tinged in shades of gold and orange on a misty day in the fall, this is a lake to take your breath...

You won’t get many views better than this. Perched high on an oak-lined cliff edge you will enjoy one of the best views in the Lake District. Surprise View is an absolute gem and offers stunning panoramic views across Derwent Water to the Skiddaw mountain range, Borrowdale Valley, the town...

Taking a well-hidden single-track road, you will climb steeply for half a mile up to an old dry-stone packhorse bridge. One of the most photographed locations in the Lake District, Ashness Bridge with its fast flowing, tumbling stream looks out across Derwentwater to the towering peaks of Skiddaw rising above...

You will be delighted that this is possibly the most accessible waterfall in the Lakes, being barely more than 200m from the roadside. In dry weather the force withers to a trickle but after rain it is an impressive sight. Torrents of water thunder over the rocks and the spray...

Set on a hill with a wonderous panorama of magnificent mountains all around are 48 stones, set here over 5000 years ago. This is Castlerigg stone circle, the ancient haunt of Druids, so the romantic Victorians thought. Today its real purpose is still shrouded in mystery but you will see...

Here, as you twist and climb upwards, you will be on the highest road in the Lake District, as well as one of the most spectacular. On the way, you will drive through some magnificent mountain scenery stopping at the top near the old Kirkstone Pass Inn to admire the...

As you travel towards Keswick, the road becomes dominated by the mountain known as Blencathra. This is the old name meaning “Saddleback” in the ancient Cumbric language and as you will see from a distance, she does look a bit like one. In summer, she wears a mantle of purple...

You will catch glimpses here and there of this more rounded, less scary, Big Brotherish mountain as we drive along as it is the fourth highest mountain in the Lakes. When you see it, you will understand why, when the Lakes first began to attract tourists back in the 19th...

If you suffer from vertigo, you will be pleased that we pass by Helvellyn in a comfy air-conditioned mini-van and you don’t have to get out and climb. This is the third highest peak in the Lake District and popular all year round with experienced walkers, especially the classic ridge...

There is nothing quite like standing at the top of Honister pass looking at the road as it winds down the pass, chasing the stream as it goes. Breathtaking – literally as it is usually quite breezy up here. You will find it is worth it though as we stop...

You won’t believe the story of the family who lived in this teeny-weeny little cottage. It has a long and varied history as you will hear when we slow down for a quick photo and pass the famous Bridge House in the heart of Ambleside. One of the most photographed...

High up on the heights to the west of Keswick lies the extensive plantations of England’s only true mountain forest. Rising sharply to 490m it encompasses 4.6 sq. miles of pine, larch, fir, cypress and spruce as well as native broadleaves including birch and oak. This is Thornthwaite Forest, planted...

Dove Cottage. William Wordsworth found this tiny cottage while on a walking tour of the Lake District. It is a richly evocative place, especially for poetry lovers. He lived here quite contentedly with his sister Dorothy and his wife and children when he was writing his famous poems. You will...

We stop here; we have to. There would be a rebellion on the bus if we didn’t so don’t worry, you will have time to get that delicious, moresome, gingery treat everyone loves. Created in 1854, only a handful of people know the secret recipe for this deliciously unique, spicy-sweet...

At the southern end of Derwentwater you will see the wonderfully named “Jaws of Borrowdale” where high crags on either side of the valley almost meet, squeezing our road and the river together, giving it a unique, almost otherworldly air. Fortunately, we all get through ok and you will find...

You will find it hard to believe that this valley with its rolling fields, tiny hamlets and scattered farms was once a busy industrial mining community. Beatrix Potter wandered here as a young woman using the landscape and the aptly named village, Little Town, as the inspiration for her children’s...

Ringed by fells, Ambleside has been described as “the hub of the wheel of beauty”, as it sits at the heart of the southern lakes with roads radiating out into the central valleys. As you pass through the centre of the little town, you will see the legacy of the...

Stopping here, you will find a couple of narrow roads leading to a tiny village green, a cluster of handsome grey-stone buildings and a scatter of traditional whitewashed cottages. This is Grasmere an archetypal Lake District village.
Look up, and all around you will see that the ring of mighty...

As you pass through this tiny hamlet packed with history, you will discover where William Wordsworth lived for 37 years, the church where he was warden, who “Dora” is and what is so special about the Badger Bar. It is hard to believe that so much happened here in such...

One of the pick-up locations for this tour - we meet outside the entrance to the railway station.
Windermere village is predominantly the product of the Victorian railway’s arrival in the Lake District. With many of the original villas and guest houses still standing, this village remains the transport hub...

Timed to meet the early morning train as it arrives from London, this is one of the pick-up locations for the tour – we meet outside the ticket office.
Oxenholme is the Lake District railway station on the West Coast Main Line which runs from London to Glasgow and is...

One of our pick-up points for this tour -we meet outside Pier 1 beside the lake shore.
Bowness is a busy, bustling type of place with large and small hotels, bed and breakfast establishments and lots of cafes, bars and restaurants. The settlement is much older than nearby Windermere with...

As you climb up the windy road from the shores of Windermere, passing by elegant Victorian mansions, you will see that the view of the lake changes quite a lot. You will have a quick photo stop to hear about the lake itself and look down on it across the...

Nestled in the valley on the south end of Ullswater, you will see that this village is a small cluster of buildings hugging the roadside with two pubs a youth hostel and a mountain rescue base. There used to be a shop, but that has recently been sold and we...

At almost eight miles, this is the second longest of the lakes, with a dramatic serpentine shape overlooked by soaring fells, none higher than the challenging reaches of Helvellyn. The leafy shores are stippled with woods of oak, birch and hazel – one of the best examples of pre-plantation Lakeland...

Passing along the leafy road past farms and pastures, suddenly, you get your first exciting glimpse of Ullswater and its fleet of historic steamers as we enter the village.
For centuries this was a busy mining valley but you will find no trace of it now. Lead was discovered in...

At the top of Derwentwater, is the northern tourist capital of the Lakes crammed full of shops, cafes, bars hotels and Victorian guest houses. Despite the genteel feel of the town, mining used to be the reason for Keswick’s existence. It all started in 16th century with expert miners from...

The straggling hamlet of Rosthwaite with its whitewashed stone buildings, backed by the encroaching fells, is where accommodation has become concentrated for the Borrowdale valley. As we pass through the village, you will see that it is a typical Lakeland village with no pretensions and full of traditional features. The...

Nestling at the foot of the Whinlatter Pass is the village of Braithwaite. You will see its magnificent backdrop of the mountains of Grisedale, Causey Pike, High Stile and Barrow, forming the famous Coledale Horseshoe as it curves round the head of Coledale Hause. Coledale beck winds its way down...