Lake District Walking Holidays

Q: When is the best time to walk in the Lake District?

A: Spring is a personal favourite of the Macs team as the nicest time of year to walk in the Lake District. The weather is usually fairly mild (although it is the Lake District so you should always bring your waterproofs!), the flowers are in bloom and lambs dot the fields and pastures. 

Q: Do I need to be able to navigate?

A: Many of the trails are signposted in the Lake District and booking with Macs Adventure you can download our app, which has the routes already loaded, so that we no longer need to use paper and can do our bit for the planet. However as the weather can be rather unpredictable in the Lake District fells we do recommend that you have had some experience in navigating in order to get full enjoyment from these trips.

Q: What are the paths like?

A: You will find a variety of terrain in the Lake District including rocky, mountainous terrain, some boggy sections and lakeside and woodland paths. Most days will involve a couple of steep ascents and descents.

Q: Will there be places to eat on the walks?

A: Depending on the walk, you may pass a small village with a cafe or tempting tearoom. There are other days where the walk will take you into the fells where there are no facilities and on those days you will be able to pick up a packed lunch from your accommodation or the village shop. Our detailed route notes will advise you of the days where this is the case.

Q: How fit do I need to be?

A: All of our Lake District tours are graded moderate and above and pass through hilly terrain, so you will enjoy the walks more if you have a relative level of fitness. However, on the Lake District Trail  and Lake District in Comfort tours you will stay for 2 nights in each place so you can always take it easy on the second day if you would prefer not to walk! 

Enjoy a picnic!  - The views you get from some of the Lake District fells are simply too beautiful to pass by quickly! Pack a picnic lunch, pick your perfect spot overlooking one of the shimmering lakes, breathe it all in and enjoy it! 

Make sure you have the right gear - Take a look at our Coast to Coast equipment blog for more details – as this can make a big difference to how enjoyable you find the walk.  For walking in the Lake District, good waterproofs are essential as well as a sturdy pair of boots! 

Stock up on gingerbread and Kendal Mint Cake! - A must on every trip to the Lake District is a visit to the famous Sarah Nelson's Grasmere Gingerbread Shop. Here at Macs we all have a bit of a sweet tooth but this gingerbread is the stuff of dreams! A delicious combination of spicy and sweetness it will have you running up those fells in no time! And on this note, another famous Lake District treat which will give you a much needed sugar boost is Kendal Mint Cake. If you feel yourself flagging, a couple of bites of this will sort you out in no time! 

Take to the water! - If you have the time we highly recommend adding some extra nights on to your trip to allow you the time to relax. And a great way to spend the afternoon in the Lake District is to take a boat trip! This way your feet can take a rest and you can experience the lakes from ground level instead of looking on them from above. Add an extra night in Ambleside and enjoy a trip on one of the Windermere Lake Cruises. Or add a night in Patterdale to experience the romance of the Ullswater Steamer boats, who have been operating since 1855.

It's not just the team here at Macs Adventure who think the Lake District is a pretty inspiring place to be! Quite a few film-makers think that's the case too and have decided to film their movies here. Look closely whilst you are out walking and you may recognise scenes from the following;

Star Wars VII The Force Awakens - this blockbuster movie used the breath-taking Derwentwater in some of it's dramatic battle scenes to create the planet of Takodana and Skiddaw peak can be seen clearly in the background. The leading star of the movie, Rey, says when she arrives in the Lake District (or Takodana!) "I didn’t know there was so much green in the whole galaxy” - a sentiment you may also feel whilst walking in the Lake District!

Peter Rabbit - The famous children's writer Beatrix Potter is almost synonymous with the Lake District. She owned several properties and farms in the Lake District, bred Herdwick Sheep and was a passionate supporter of the National Trust. Her most successful story, Peter Rabbit was first published in 1901 and in 2018 it was turned into a film starring James Corden and Margot Robbie. Just like the books, the filming locations for this were all around Ambleside and Windermere

Tommy -  Filming for this 1970's cult classic took place in the Borrowdale Valley, and also near Wainwright's favourite, Haystacks. 

Miss Potter - Yew Tree Farm in Coniston was the star of the show in this 2006 film about the life of Beatrix Potter starring Renée Zellweger. Once owned by Beatrix Potter, it is the scene of her home Hill Top in the film.