Hotels with pools in the Lake District: contemporary spa hotels and rustic pubs with rooms

Widely reputed to be one of the most beautiful parts of the UK, the Lake District attracts visitors time and again. Some are looking for the perfect walking holiday, others to partake in water sports and outdoor pursuits. Some visit for the superb food and warm hospitality, and others for the history and culture peppered around this exquisite national park. For most however, it is an opportunity to relax, whether fuelled by adrenaline or perhaps in a spa hotel for those looking for something a little more peaceful. Either way, the Lake District provides opportunity for all, in congenial and heartwarming style.

With a pool being such a central feature when it comes to relaxation, many of the hotels and spa hotels in the area take the experience to innovative new levels. The Gilpin Hotel and Lake House at Windermere is the perfect example of a destination catering to contemporary travel needs in a quiet and beautiful way. Guests can stay in the country house Gilpin Hotel, complete with Michelin Star restaurant, or in the Spa Lodges and Garden Suites at the Lake House. A contemporary haven for those seeking tranquility, the spa lodges include their own hot tubs, while the spa itself includes a gym, swimming pool, sauna, steam room and indoor hot tub all with superb views of (as you might have guessed), the lake.

Though the Lake House is a wonderfully modern example of hospitality in the Lake District, other destinations provide more traditional surroundings with forward thinking spa and leisure facilities. A favourite is The Swan Hotel and Spa at Newby Bridge, for example, fusing 21st century luxuries with rustic style in rooms, suites and cottages. On the water’s edge it is an idyllic location complete with a spa offering ESPA treatments, personal training, a gym, swimming pool, sauna, steam room and Jacuzzi. Everything you could possibly want after a long walk by the lake.