I love the Lake District and we try to get up there every year & stay in a different town or village each time. We have family in Kendal therefore we can visit the family & have a holiday in one go. Last year we decided to try Ambleside. We normally stay in quieter villages, but as we had friends coming this time we decided to stay in a busier town with a choice of drinking holes. ~ Location ~ Ambleside is a town located just into the Lake District national park on the top tip of Lake Windermere, a few miles from Windermere and Bowness-on-Windermere. The main road (A591) runs through the towns' one way system from Kendal up to ...  Read the complete review

Ambleside - the best little town in the UK. Many may agree with me, many may not, but I don't ask to be agreed with all the time ;o) My love of Ambleside comes from going to University there to study teaching. It was then that I got into mountain biking and walking and if that's what you're looking for in a town, well here it is! I arrived at Uni a not very fit person and left as someone who biked everywhere and walked up a lot of hills. Ambleside is known as the heart of the Lake District, as it's the tourist hotspot of the area and within easy walking or driving distance from lots of places. Grasmere is just a short walk out of Ambleside, whilst ...  Read the complete review

Earlier this year my family decided to take a much needed break to the Lake District. I had very litttle to do with the planning of this holiday, all I had to do was arrive home the day before ready for my dad to drive us all to Ambleside, the village that my parents had decided to stay in. I had half-heartedly read reviews and guides to Ambleside but really had no idea about what to expect. My initial impression of Ambleside was very good. Driving through the village it all seemed so picturesque and quaint. I wouldn't say the buildings are the most attractive that I've ever seen, in fact they're a little bit dreary but they're old and they look old and I love ...  Read the complete review

Ambleside holds such an idylic place in my heart as it is somewhere i used to visit yearly with my late parents. We would stay in a most fantastic hotel (which i believe still exists) called the Kirkstone Country Foot Country House Hotels and it was this hotel that was instrunmental in developing my love of a good dining experience. Evening meals were a true gastranomic experience of 6 courses of the most amazing, locally sourced food acompanied by superb wines and followed always by cheese, biscuits and port. This was always the highlight for me as we would take our time dressing for dinner and it was such an experience! I remember ...  Read the complete review

Ambleside is described as the tourist hotspot of the lakes, centrally located around Lake Windermere which is I think the largest natural lake in the UK it is easily accessible from the M6 and set in beautiful stunning scenery. Ambleside itself has plenty to offer, lots of places to stay and eat and plenty of shops to keep you entertained, aprking can be a problem though so arrive early if you're going just for the day out. My biggest issue with Ambleside though is lack of places to eat if you have a young family, a lot of the restaurants only really cater for adults and the menu only offers posh nosh and somehave no childrens menus at all. The last ...  Read the complete review