WINDERMERE WITH A TODDLER

Two nights in Windermere, Lake District with a toddler

We visited Windermere with our 21 month old daughter. Unfortunately she wasn't very well so we didn't get to do everything we had planned but this blog post will let you know what our planned itinerary one so you can enjoy what we missed out on!

We stayed at Fair Rigg at Cradel Haus. Fair Rigg is perfectly located a 2 minute drive and only a 15 minute walk from the centre of Bowness on Windermere, home to numerous shops, restaurants and cafes and the start of various popular Lake District walks. Fair Rigg is made up of four luxury apartments sleeping from between 2-8 guests. They are also dog friendly too and your pet will receive a little welcome pack on arrival which is such a nice touch.

We stayed in the Wainwright apartment which had two large double bedrooms, a living area with dining table, sofa and TV, a fully equipped kitchen with a washing machine, Nespresso machine and dish washer and a modern, stylish bathroom. There is an electric charger too if you have an electric vehicle.

Having kitchen facilities and especially a washing machine is vital when you are travelling with young children. You wouldn't expect to need to use the washing machine for a two night stay but unfortunately we had to and we were so grateful we had the ability to do so. Also, having a kitchen where you can make breakfast to your toddler's liking is perfect. There is nothing worse than having to explain to a tiny human they need to wait for their food whilst scrambling around trying to find the nearest cafe!

There was sheep and lambs outside of the window too and you can walk down to get a closer look. Of course, our toddler absolutely loved this!

We were extremely impressed with the level of cleanliness, modern decor and facilities available in the apartment and this is the perfect stay for a family of four, friends or a couple and grandparents. The apartment came with a cot and highchair so you could put the cot in one of the bedrooms or in the living area.

Cradel Haus will shortly be opening a new property in the centre of Windermere so an even more central and convenient location for visiting the restaurants, bars and start of the hiking routes.

On our first day we walked down to the Marina and visited the Boathouse restaurant where we had drinks whilst watching the sunset. If you can catch sunny weather in the Lake District, we truly don't think there is a better place to be.

As we explained, our trip to a turn but our plans for the first day were:

Hike to Orrest Head view point. This is a pram-friendly 3.5km round trip where you can see Julia Donaldson characters on the way and the most spectacular views from the top. It's easy and we saw numerous younger children tackling this hike with their parents. We were grateful it was pram-friendly considering we had a poorly, tired baby. Would definitely recommend (we did this hike on our second day)
Lunch at Toast. Toast have a small and simple menu of Korean inspired toasted sandwiches and just take a look at some of the photographs online or on their Instagram and you will understand why we wanted to try here. They look incredible. Unfortunately we didn't make it to Toast on this trip but we will be back!
Explore Bowness on Windermere and the souvenir shops
Get a takeaway pizza from Base. There is a sourdough pizza shop a 5 minute drive from Fair Rigg. We have visited this pizza place before and sat in so knew this was the perfect takeaway option to have once we'd put our daughter to bed. There is a great choice of pizzas and dips.

Our plan for our second day in Windermere was:

Have breakfast at Home Ground cafe. We had brunch here after tackling the Orrest Head hike in the morning. We had to wait outside for around 20 minutes to get a table because it is so popular. This was a Friday in March so were quite surprised how busy it was. You can understand having to wait in July/August time but not in March. However, the food was worth the wait. They serve the freshest sourdough bread and hash browns like you will never have tasted before. The portions are huge and you will definitely have refuelled after your morning hike after eating here. Would definitely recommend.

Our plan for the second day, which did not materialise, was to do the Bowness on Windermere circular route. This is said to take around 2.5 hours to complete. It is not a pram-friendly walk so our plan was to use a carrier and our toddler in there. We will be back to complete this hike and will let you know how it is.
Our afternoon was spent at Brockhole Adventure Park. This is another 5-10 minute drive from Fair Rigg. It is free to enter the playground and it is huge. There is so much to play on and something for every age from babies to older children (and adults!). You can also walk down to the lake front from here and if you're feeling adventurous sign up to the ziplining or archery.
Our plan was to have drinks at the Belsfield hotel. The hotel is set on a hill overlooking Windermere and it is the perfect spot to watch the sunset and people watch the visitors down below.
Our plan was to have dinner at Jintana Thai restaurant or Tapios tapas restaurant as from our research they were recommended.