About Keswick

Keswick is a charming market town just off the northern shore of spectacular Derwentwater, in the sometimes overlooked northern Lake District. Many people find this landscape inspirational, to the extent that the local vicar became such a staunch defender of the right for all to experience the beauty of the area, that he became a co-founder of the National Trust; and numerous poets waxed lyrical about it. Beatrix Potter visited each summer, and included many illustrations of Derwentwater on the pages of her very famous Peter Rabbit series. The best places to stay in Keswick make good use of the views, creating comfortable spaces to rest while still appreciating the landscape. We have picked out a cosy pub-with-rooms, and a friendly guest house for special mention.

Keswick is still very much a market town, hosting regular markets on Thursday and Saturday in the Market Square, surrounding the Moot Hall, which is now the Tourist Information Centre. It’s also still a centre for pencil production (the discovery of black lead in Seathwaite in the 16th century set this industry up and running here) — if that’s whetted your appetite you’ll be wanting to visit the Pencil Museum. Keswick Museum & Art Gallery is good for a wetter day, as is its cinema — one of Britain’s oldest — and there are a number of local churches. However Keswick is a good base for exploring the further afield with the highlights of Troutbeck, Buttermere, Ullswater, Borrowdale, Scafell Pike, Grasmere, Ambleside, and Windermere all within a very pleasant drive.

The best places to stay in Keswick may already be familiar to walkers and fell scramblers, because it’s becoming one of the largest centres of outdoor activities in the UK. It’s not just walkers and climbers either, there are lots of opportunities for watersports on and around Derwentwater and its islands, two indoor climbing walls, several mountain biking centres, and you can often see paragliders exploring the region from the air.

The Best Places to Stay in Keswick

For the Views

Howe Keld is well positioned between the market town bit of Keswick and Derwentwater, with wonderful views of the hills and fells surrounding the whole area. The property has been converted from a row of residential homes, and it now offers 12 spacious and light rooms and suites. The designer has plumped for bright, cheerfully coloured feature walls in many of the rooms, but has otherwise stuck to simple wooden furnishing and plenty of white. The couple who own the hotel are keen outdoors folk, and have lots of great recommendations and advice; the Swiss husband is a chef by training, and offers up a fantastic breakfast and the best coffee in town.

Great Pubs with Rooms

In a plum spot in the heart of friendly Keswick, The Royal Oak is a former Georgian mail inn and magistrate’s court, turned cosy pub-with-rooms. The pub is still the heart of The Royal Oak, but it’s been seriously updated, and is now more of a smart gastro pub, with spacious, low-ceilinged dining rooms, and large open fireplaces. It’s owned by Thwaites, so this is a good opportunity to sample the Lancashire brewer’s ales. The 18 guest rooms are on the cosy side, but are well arranged to make use of the space, and decorated with country house hotel style.

Prefer a Private Apartment or Cottage?

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Travel Information

If you’re travelling to Keswick by air you have several choices: Manchester Airport is often the most convenient airport for the Lake District, and is about two hours away by car or taxi, or about three and a half hours away from Keswick by public transport. Newcastle International Airport may also be worth considering, it’s about about an hour and a half by road, or about four and a half hours by public transport. Keswick is about four and a half hours away from London by train, via Penrith, and about three hours by rail from Edinburgh.
If you want to hire a car we recommend you visit our online partner, Rentalcars.
Keswick is warmest and driest in the spring and summer, from about March through until September, but it’s very easy to argue that it's beautiful in all seasons, and Wordsworth definitely did... There’s enough indoor activity to hold off boredom on wetter days — take a cruise on the lake, visit the local National Trust properties, or one of the lake’s museums, have afternoon tea overlooking the lake, or just walk in the rain.