Generic news & developments:

Cumbria is home to Britain’s Favourite View!
We’ve always known it but now its official – Cumbria has Britain’s Favourite View!  Wastwater in the Wasdale Valley was one of 16 iconic places featured in the ITV show, to find Britain’s Favourite View and was awarded the prestigious title in the live studio finale in September 2007.  www.golakes.co.uk/features

2008 is Cumbria’s Year of Adventure

Whilst our North West neighbours, Liverpool are celebrating their status as 2008’s Capital of Culture, Cumbria will be leading a celebration of all things adventurous.  With 16 sparkling lakes, including England’s deepest and longest; England’s highest mountain; and some of the UK’s best walking and cycling routes, Cumbria’s outdoor adventure playground has something to offer everyone.

www.golakes.co.uk/adventure

Eco Friendly Bus Trips Along Hadrian’s Wall

Walkers tackling the Hadrian’s Wall Path National Trail this year can be truly eco friendly and leave the car at home thanks to a public transport service that navigates the Frontiers of the Roman Empire Word Heritage Site in the north of England.

The award winning Hadrian’s Wall Bus AD122 service re-launches this month with improved timetables and facilities, enabling visitors to enjoy a carbon-friendly and cost-effective trip to the Roman landmark.

The AD122 Service is a valuable resource for walkers. Single tickets start from as little as £1 while great value one day tickets for adults cost only £7 and entitle ramblers unlimited journeys on the bus, perfect for walking sections of the Trail, hopping on and off the bus to explore surrounding towns and attractions and getting back to accommodation in order to rest those tired feet.  www.hadrians-wall.org

Wainwright’s “voice” leads walkers on famous hike

Add something special to your walk with a unique podcast which allows people to take a walk with “Alfred Wainwright,” leading the way.

Cumbria Tourism arranged for Nik Wood Jones, the official Wainwright voiceover from the highly successful BBC series Wainwright Walks to walk what the author himself speculated was the “best known hill in the country” – Helm Crag, Grasmere, also known as the Lion and the Lamb. Walkers download the podcast onto their iPods or MP3 players, plug in their ear-phones and set off, with “Wainwright” leading the way and giving modern-day reference points for people on the move.

www.golakes.co.uk

Climate Change Voluntary Donation

Cumbria Tourism has joined forces with the Tourism & Conservation Partnership to create a more sustainable Cumbria and has launched the Climate Change Voluntary Donation scheme where visitors are encouraged to donate £1, which will go straight into environmentally-friendly projects such as developing new cycle paths, construction of buildings and the management of forests and wilderness areas.

www.golakes.co.uk/climate

Theatre By The Lake

This special 400-seater cultural centre with an outstanding panorama of mountains on the shores of Derwentwater, Keswick, is gearing up for a major revamp in 2008. It will mean a boost to its cutting-edge theatre studio being expanded from 70-seats to 100 to host a range of controversial and contemporary productions throughout the year. Think Keswick goes Channel Four…  www.theatrebythelake.com

Spa developments:

Macdonald Old England Hotel, Windermere:

The new spa facility was completed in mid-November 2007, with new facilities that include an 18m swimming pool with an outside terrace overlooking Lake Windermere, thermal suite rock sauna, aroma steam room and ice room.  There are eight treatment rooms, a relaxation and hospitality room and various treatments using Decleor and Jessica ranges, plus St Tropez tanning.

www.macdonaldhotels.co.uk/oldengland

Armathwaite Hall, near Keswick:
Is to undergo a £4 million spa development to be completed in the winter of 2008 and to result in the redevelopment of the spa with a brand new building featuring infinity pool with waterfall, hydrotherapy pool, ten treatment rooms, multi functional hospitality area suitable to cater for more than 180 people.  The work in progress will be hardly visible and will not affect enjoyment of the present facilities.

www.armathwaite-hall.com

The Swan Hotel, Newby Bridge: 
The Swan launched its new Espa Spa in Autumn 2007. The spa offers indulgent face and body treatments in a picturesque location overlooking the River Leven at the southern tip of Lake Windermere. www.swanhotel.com

Accommodation developments:

Macdonald Old England Hotel, Windermere:
The Macdonald Hotel has undergone a £8.25 million refurbishment, which was completed in November 2007.  This has created an additional 49 rooms, which make a total of 103 luxury rooms, including lake view suites and a new spa facility.

www.macdonaldhotels.co.uk/oldengland

Linthwaite House Hotel, Windermere:
Linthwaite House has an extension planned for early 2008, which will include a special luxury suite.  www.linthwaite.co.uk

Full Circle Lake District Yurts, Rydal, Ambleside:

By Easter 2008, there will be two more yurts on this beautiful site and one is to be a secluded 'honeymoon yurt'.  www.lake-district-yurts.co.uk

Langdale Hotel, Langdale:
Now has an elegant wedding gazebo to offer a unique and memorable outside location for wedding ceremonies.  www.langdale.co.uk

Best in England 2008?

The Lake District has a luxury B&B and a stylish self-catering cottage both vying for Best in England awards in Spring 2008.  Stone Cottage and Boltongate Old Rectory have won awards at county and North West level and now go up against the best in the country as part of the Enjoy England Awards 2008 run by national tourism organisation, VisitBritain. Joining them will be Carlisle’s Tullie House, which was crowned Best Visitor Attraction in Cumbria and the North West.

Stone Cottage, Deepdale near Ullswater
Luxurious self-catering accommodation, which only opened in the Summer of 2007 has already won the Best Self-Catering Cottage in the Lake District at both the Cumbria Tourism awards, and England’s North West Tourism Awards.

Stone Cottage sees every guest window framing a classic Lakeland view while judges described it as having “the wow factor of a boutique hotel.”  The paint is by Farrow and Ball, and the fabrics from Liberty Osborne & Little. Luxury is yours in a spacious cottage for six. www.lakelandstonecottage.co.uk

Southwaite Green, Lorton, near Cockermouth:
New, beautiful self-catering accommodation with superb green credentials and all of the buildings are carbon neutral. www.southwaitegreen.co.uk

No.43, Arnside

No.43 Boutique Guesthouse in Arnside only re-opened in January 2008 after a complete refurbishment.  It offers contemporary accommodation boasting tremendous views over Morecambe Bay and the Kent Estuary, and is located within a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).  All individually designed en-suite rooms have under-floor heating, Christy towels, welcoming fluffy bathrobes, and exquisite toiletries from the nearby Bath House of Sedbergh.  www.no43.org.uk

Attraction developments:

Honister Slate Mine, Borrowdale
Honister Slate Mine launched England’s first ever Via Ferrata for outdoor thrill seekers in May 2007.  Via Ferrata requires walkers to be secured to a fixed cable to follow a Victorian miner’s route along craggy cliff faces using steel ladders and solid bridges to reach the summit (2,126ft at Fleetwith Pike).  Via Ferrata, meaning “Iron road” in Italian, was originally developed to facilitate troop movements in the mountains during the First World War, and the best known are in the Dolomites.
www.honister.com

Swim With Sharks…at the Aquarium of the Lakes

A new interactive experience is opening in the Aquarium of the Lakes in Cumbria, allowing visitors to dive with sharks, hippos and crocodiles (well, virtual ones at least).

You'll never go in the water again!

The ‘Virtual Dive Bell’ will take visitors on a tour of lakes and freshwater environments around the world, recreating the sights, sounds and even smells to make the attraction a truly interactive experience. It will also give participants multiple-choice questions to answer to avoid being gobbled up by the computerised flesh eaters.

With domestic tourism struggling somewhat, one way in which operators are looking to bolster visitor numbers is by weatherproofing their attractions to combat the vagaries of the British climate.

Virtual attractions such as this certainly fit the bill from this point of view and bring a taste of the exotic to the UK that would not otherwise be available. It also caters for the increasing consumer demand for leisure activities that they ‘experience’ rather than just ‘do’. And in this case, a simulation is probably as close as people want to get to ‘experiencing’ an encounter with Jaws and co.  www.aquariumofthelakes.co.uk

Grizedale Forest Park, Grizedale Forest
New facilities are planned throughout 2008 including a new café and additional works of public art.  www.forestry.gov.uk

Whinlatter Forest Park development

The new £500,000 mountain bike trail and Go Ape high-wire forest adventure course (part-funded by the NWDA) is due to open at Whinlatter Forest near Keswick in the Summer of 2008.  Whinlatter Forest Park is England’s only true mountain forest – rising to 790m above sea level, offering fantastic views of the Lake District and Scotland.  The new 19-kilometre bike trail will be the longest purpose built trail in the Lake District.  The Go Ape high-wire forest adventure courses include rope bridges, tarzan swings, and zip slides, which reach up to 40 feet in the trees.  www.forestry.gov.uk

A World in Miniature, Houghton Hall Garden Centre, nr Carlisle

Home to the World’s smallest teddy bear and a host of other record-breaking miniatures, this unique museum holds an extensive and amazing collection of antique furniture, paintings, room sets and everyday objects at sizes you won’t believe – and will have to look through magnifying glasses to appreciate!  The World’s smallest teddy bear measures just three-and-a-half millimetres, and there are also true reproductions of Rembrandt and Van Gogh paintings to marvel at.  Opened early 2007.  www.aworldinminiature.com

Lady Wakefield @ Ullswater Steamers

Lady Wakefield, previously known as Totnes Castle, was brought to Ullswater in 2005 after spending years ferrying passengers on the River Dart and Plymouth Sound.  After undergoing a major refurbishment, she has joined the three existing heritage vessels in the historic Ullswater Steamers fleet.  The 58-year old boat, which is listed in the National Register of Historic Vessels, carries 130 passengers, enabling Ullswater Steamers to offer daytime charters for conferences, weddings and group visits.  Launched Summer 2007.  www.ullswater-steamers.co.uk

The Beacon, Whitehaven: 

The Beacon attraction has now re-opened after its £2.2 million revamp.  The result is a treasure house of past, present and future that combines an interactive museum with an art gallery and activity centre for all ages. www.thebeacon-whitehaven.co.uk

Foodie developments:

Michelin-starred food

Cumbria is the best place for Michelin star food in the whole of the North West with three Michelin star restaurants in the 2008 guide.  The Holbeck Ghyll, Windermere; The Sharrow Bay Country House Hotel, Ullswater, and L'enclume at Cartmel.  www.golakes.co.uk/food-and-drink

Lucy’s of Ambleside: 

Have just opened their first Lucy4 bar and bistro franchise in the old Porthole premises in Bowness-on-Windermere known as Lucy4 at the Porthole.

www.lucysofambleside.co.uk

The Quaker Tapestry Tearooms, Kendal

The Tapestry Tearooms at the Quaker Tapestry Exhibition Centre in Kendal have been awarded the ‘Best Visitor Attraction for Vegetarians’ by the National Vegetarian Society 2007. www.quaker-tapestry.co.uk

The Highwayman, Burrow, Kirkby Lonsdale

After a £1.2m renovation, the Highwayman re-opened its doors in April 2007 and offers great, regional home-cooked food and a menu inspired by Nigel Haworth, Chef Patron of the award-winning Northcote Manor.  Relaxing atmosphere with traditional, crackling log fires in the Winter and al fresco dining in the fabulous walled garden in the Summer.  Winner of ‘Pub Newcomer of the Year’ in the Good Food Guide 2008.

www.highwaymaninn.co.uk

L,enclume, Cartmel

Simon Rogan, chef patron of the Michelin-starred restaurant with rooms in Cartmel, has big plans for 2008, which include opening a new, casual restaurant, Rogan & Company in the village.  In addition, L’enclume will boast two new luxury suites offering spacious, beautifully designed accommodation, and a completely refurbished dining room and bedrooms. www.lenclume.co.uk

Zeffirelli’s Jazz Bar, Ambleside

Zeffirelli’s, the Lakes premier dinner and cinema experience has just refurbished its jazz bar.  The refurbishment maintains the historic Zeffirelli’s style of contemporary, art deco feel, bespoke lighting, stylish fabrics and a sophisticated, comfortable atmosphere.  www.zeffirellis.com

*NEW* Events/Anniversaries

Centenary of publication of The Tale of Jemima Puddle-duck

Perhaps the most well-known Beatrix Potter character after Peter Rabbit, Jemima Puddle-duck celebrates her centenary year in 2008 and a number of initiatives are planned with partners to help her enjoy her 100^th anniversary year including introducing the great Jemima Puddle-duck Easter Egg Hunt.  www.golakes.co.uk/jemima

The Lakes Chilli Fest, Levens Hall, near Kendal (16-17 August)

This will be the first ever chilli festival to take place in the North of England and is set to be the ‘hottest’ event of the Summer.  Held within the grounds of award-winning Levens Hall, it will be a celebration of all things hot & spicy and only the very brave can try the hottest chillis around!  Head Gardener, Chris Crowder has been growing chilli plants especially for the event, and local food producers will be ‘going hot’ for the occasion with cookery demonstrations, salsa music and dancing and children’s activities.  www.chillifest.co.uk

Lakes Alive

Lakes Alive is a new season of outdoor arts events featuring some of the world’s best outdoor performers, bringing a taste of the Edinburgh fringe festival to the Lake District’s towns and villages.  The summer season of arts events will start with a spectacular show on the shores of Lake Windermere in June and culminate in Kendal, where more than 150 artists will be performing over three days at the Mintfest international street arts festival.  www.lakesalive.org

60 years celebration at Townend, Windermere

National Trust-owned Townend on the side of the Troutbeck Valley was home to the Browne family for over 400 years, and 2008 will mark 60 years of the 17^th century house being open to the public.  www.nationaltrust.org

230^th Anniversary

The first Guide to the Lakes was produced in 1778, so is celebrating its 230th anniversary in 2008.