A Country House Retreat to Lake Windermere

With a beautiful sunny weekend ahead of us, we made the three hour car journey from Nottingham to the picturesque Lake Windermere, in the Lake District. 

My dad had bought us a country retreat for the weekend, as a Christmas gift and we figured the Easter holidays would be a perfect time for us to escape the hustle and bustle of everyday life and head for some peace and quiet (and some country pubs).

We were staying at the beautiful Cragwood Country House, built in 1910 this beautiful house sits on a hill that is nestled within Lake Windermere. As we made our way down the long drive, we parked our car to be greeted by the friendly welcome staff at reception. 

 

Instantly this place felt so warm and cosy, a place to rest and recoup in one of their many homely rooms. The 'wooden room' as I call it, is probably the one I loved the most. With it roaring fire and large leather sofas that you can just sink into and look out onto the lake. 

When booking the hotel, they were nearly fully booked with guests (not surprise there) and the apologetic manager told me that he only had their 'smallest room' left. Let me tell you, this room had a king size bed, flat screen TV and spacious bathroom - it was absolutely perfect and I would have loved to see their 'biggest room'.

That night we made our way into the town of Windermere (10 minute drive from the hotel) to pay a visit to some lovely country bars and restaurants. Once we were full up from our fish and chips, we made our way back to the hotel to watch the sunset over the lake. 

The next day we spent most our morning trying to rent a boat or paddle board, but it turns out we were a month too early. But if you happen to be paying a visit to the Lake District then I would seriously check out the water sports activities here!

We then decided to take a trip to the next town of Ambleside, which is just as beautiful as Windermere! Walking around the town and seeing all the quaint little shops, it was felt so good just to chill out and enjoy life by the lake.




Our last day was spent around the Lake, it had quickly become our favourite place to just sit by and watch the world go by.

As we paddled our feet in the (slightly) chilly water, skimming rocks against it really made me feel grateful for all of the amazing people and things I have going off in my life.

Life really is too short, so make sure you make the most of every second.