LAKE WINDERMERE CRUISES
Scenic Cruises in England’s Lake District
Lake
Windermere is the largest of the lakes in England’s Lake
District National Park, 10 miles long and 200 feet deep in spots, and
the heart of the popular tourist area of Cumbria. Cruising the lakes
by boat has been
a principal feature of touring the lakes since the Victorian age. Lake
Windermere is in fact designated in Britain as a “public highway” for
its boat transportation, once used to haul slate and copper mining goods,
but now mainly tourists on scenic cruise boats, or ferries carrying auto
and pedestrian traffic across its waters.
The first boats on Lake Windermere were sailing packets, until the first steamer, The Lady of the Lake, was launched in 1846. The English poet William Wordsworth who lived in the lakeland, protested the arrival of the passenger steam ship, believing it would bespoil the peaceful natural beauty of the countryside. One hundred and fifty years later, the steam ships which Wordsworth feared still ply the waters, but now allow visitors to enjoy this beautiful natural wonder in a style even the 19th Century poet might still recognize.
The cruise boats on Lake Windermere are operated by Windermere Lakes
Cruises whose steamers and launches carry over a million visitors to
the lakes every year. The fleet has been updated over the years and range
from the oldest vessel the Tern, built in 1891, to the other historic
register ships of the 1930s, the the Teal and the Swan, to a number of
more modern vessels from the 1960s to 1990s. The larger steams have saloons,
promenade decks, teashops and licensed bars on board.
The Windermere Cruise steamers and launches operate a route linking the main towns of the lake, Ambleside, Bowness-on-Windermere and Lakeside. A most popular cruise excursion is a 45-minute Islands Cruise from Bowness, which passes wooded islands and secluded bays. A 40-minute trip from Ambleside offers free entry to the Lake District Visitor Center at Brockhole with its exhibitions, playgrounds, gardens and restaurant. The main cruise routes operate daily throughout the year between Ambleside, Bowness and Lakeside (except on Christmas Day); taking 3 hours to make the full circuit, but passengers can get on and off the boat to enjoy attractions around the lake.
At
Lakeside the boats meet up with the Lakeside & Haverthwaite Steam
Railway for a steam locomotive ride (see Steam
Railway of the Lake District).
A combined cruise and train ticket is available. The Aquarium of the
Lakes is also to be found at Lakeside with England's largest collection
of freshwater fish. At Bowness-on-Windermere, kids will enjoy a visit
to the World of Beatrix Potter – a miniature
journey into the barnyard of Potter’s animal characters, or cross
the lake to explore the sheep grazed pastures where the real Beatrix
Potter lived and invented her imaginary world (see Touring
Beatrix Potter’s
Lake District). Ambleside is the market town at the northeast
head of the lake which traces its history back to the days of the Romans
and
the Vikings and a starting point for walks and motor tours. Visitors
to Ambleside can amble 2 miles on by road to visit Rydal Mount, where
the poet William Wordsworth lived from 1813 to 1850 or 5 miles to Grasmere
where Wordsworth lived in Dove Cottage between 1799 and 1808 and where
the Wordsworth Museum and grave are located.
If
motor cruising with a boat full of tourists isn't your style, you can
rent
a classic wooden rowboat to explore on your own, or just feed
the swans. Parking lots for the Windermere Cruises can be found at or
near the main boat docks at each location. Special theme wine and lunch
cruises and well as Jazz and buffet cruises are offered during the main
cruise season. The
weather on the lakes can be quite changeable in the spring and fall,
so be
prepared
for
what
Wordsworth
might have
called
the moods of the glistening bay. © Bargain
Travel Europe
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Windermere
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See Also:
ULLSWATER
STEAMERS LAKE CRUISES
BEECH
HILL HOTEL - WINDERMERE SHORE
OLD
ENGLAND HOTEL BOWNESS ON WINDERMERE
