This cottage is great for walkers. We’ve hired a number of places nr Ambleside before, as it’s such a good area for walks, and decided to compromise a bit on quality of accommodation to get within easy walking distance of eateries and pubs so we didn’t need the car if we didn’t want to cook! If you’re OK with a 20deg incline up the hill to bed (the road is called ‘The Struggle’!), then it’s less than 10min walk. Perfect! And for that hill, you get amazing mountain views from the windows.
Also good for walkers:
- no cream carpets to worry about
- deep bath - much appreciated after hill walks!
- can accommodate up to 3 adults (1 standard, comfy double, 2 less comfy doubles)
On the downside, the compromise on quality vs staying further out of town:
- the cottage furnishings / equipment is outdated. If 80s/90s decor and non-matching anything bothers you, look elsewhere (say, out the window at that view!!).
- the bathroom and toilet rooms are very narrow, ie the toilet room has only about 40cm clearance in the doorway. Less beside the bath so some would need to climb in over the end
- parking outside is difficult - multi-point turn required, uneven surface, and as previous reviewer says, getting out the drive is a challenge as it’s on a steep hill and a bend
- other little niggles vs most other places we’ve stayed: no hairdryer; no small knife (thanks to previous reviewer who alerted us to take one!); only 1 large wine glass; 2 DVDs (we found more in oxfam!); the welcome guide useless (has very ‘retro’ info- no recent thought given to what would make a great stay); unsurprisingly, no visitor book (which usually gives good eatery / walk suggestions, or simply handy hints about how to get the fire to work... push hard!).
On balance we had a lovely, refreshing week, due to the excellent location. We love Ambleside and there are some cracking walks. The cottage is a bit ‘unloved’ which is a shame as it could be idyllic; but with the introductory discount the price we paid was fair for the convenience of being so close to Ambleside. We’d recommend to walkers and may come again, but will look for others this close to Ambleside too.