Askham Hall

Penrith, Cumbria

With a Michelin-starred restaurant, Grade II listed garden, 17th-century pele tower and French drawing room, Askham Hall sounds as if it might be very formal; not a bit of it. More

Good Hotel Guide Review

With a Michelin-starred restaurant, Grade II listed garden, 17th-century pele tower and French drawing room, Askham Hall sounds as if it might be very formal; not a bit of it. The ancestral home of the Lowthers, now a restaurant-with-rooms, is relaxed and unpretentious with dogs and children mingling among family heirlooms, books and modern art. One drawing room has doors to a classic English country house garden. ‘A lovely place in a lovely setting.’ Main house bedrooms – some with leaded windows and fireplace – mix antiques with modern pieces, while those in the courtyard have a rustic style. Quirky shapes can mean unconventional layouts, and a walk-in shower in the bedroom surprised one couple – though some other bathrooms have a roll-top bath. The tasting menu’s ‘utterly delicious food’, with produce from the kitchen garden, might include salt-baked duck with lingonberry sauce, and barbecued pork with rosehip and pickled pear. Book dinner ahead, advises one reader. A ‘very good breakfast’ delighted one guest with ‘an excellent kipper!’ Guests on their fourth visit described the whole experience as ‘first-rate’.

Hotel details

Address

Askham
Penrith
Cumbria
CA10 2PF
England

Telephone

01931 712350

Bedrooms

19. 2 suitable for disabled.

Open

all year excl. Christmas, restaurant closed Sun/Mon.

Facilities

2 drawing rooms, snug, 2 dining rooms (vegetarian menu), in-room TV, civil wedding licence, 12-acre grounds, outdoor swimming pool, hot tub, function facilities, 
EV charging, restaurant wheelchair accessible, adapted toilet.

Background music

in reception rooms in evening.

Children

all ages welcomed, free cots, extra bed £35, no under-10s in restaurant in evening.

Dogs

allowed (£15 per night, welcome pack), not in restaurant, on lead in grounds.

Credit cards

Amex, MC, Visa.

Prices

B&B doubles from £180, singles from £168.