Full Day
Final drop-off approx. 5:30pm
We start the day with a scenic drive following a leafy, tree lined lane, well known for the beautiful houses on either side. Following the eastern bank of the sunny, sparkling Lake Windermere, you then plunge into the limestone area of the South Lakes Levens Valley. Our first stop is at the Lakeland Motor Museum and your entry to the museum is included in the tour.
On our arrival at The Lakeland Motor Museum, you can walk down memory lane and feast your eyes on a unique collection of 30,000 exhibits, including 140 classic cars and motorbikes, all carefully assembled over 50 years. The collections include Motorcycles & Scooters, Cars, Vincent Motorbikes, the Campbell Bluebird Exhibition, The Isle of Man TT Race Tribute, Automobilia, Bicycles and Caravans. Your entry to the Motor Museum is included in your tour. You can also find out about the fascinating local history and see reconstructed displays of a 1920's garage, a 1950's café, period shops and even a historic recreation of women's fashion. Time will fly past but eventually you will have to tear yourself away as we get back on the bus and head to your next stop at Cartmel.
Tucked away among the whitewashed farms, slate barns and softly rolling green fields is the charming village of Cartmel. Described as "A thimble full of diamonds" the tiny village stretches out along the high street from the racecourse and market place to the monumental bulk of the Medieval Priory. On arrival at Cartmel, you will have time to look around the village and visit the impressive Priory church. Your guide will be available to answer any questions you may have.
Back on the bus, we drive through the countryside to Holker Hall, Gardens & Estate which is the designated lunch stop. Entry to the House, Gardens & Estate is included in this tour. From the time of the Dissolution of the Monasteries by Henry VIII, there has been a grand house on this site, the first one built in 1603 and the new one built in the 1870's after a disastrous fire. You will have time to wander around the house, gardens and parkland and enjoy a delicious lunch in the Courtyard cafe. Your guide will be available to show you all of the interesting places, things to see and exquisite treasures but you are free to explore all by yourself if you wish. Don't worry though, you can still keep in touch with your guide via the personal radio communication technology which will be available every time you step off the minibus.
After the nostalgia of the Lakeland Motor Museum, the tranquillity of Cartmel Village, the grandeur of the Medieval Priory and the elegance of Holker hall, the pace quickens now as we head off to the Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway. There isn't anything which can compare with a journey on a steam railway and if you have never done this before, you are in for a treat. The sound, the smell and the noise of a steam locomotive is exciting and unmistakable and children in particular, of all ages, are enthralled by the experience.Your journey on the steam railway is included in the tour price. At Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway you will travel back in time when you climb aboard the train. A distant memory of bygone years for some and new experience for others, it's a unique experience for all. Assisted by your guide, hop aboard the train at Haverthwaite Station and enjoy views from your carriage up to Lakeside, the southern tip of Lake Windermere where your guide will be waiting to help you aboard the boat for your Windermere Lake Cruise.
Having arrived at the railway terminus, your guide will help you aboard the boat for a cruise with spectacular Lakeland views from England's largest lake. Windermere Lake Cruises is the most popular attraction in Cumbria and as you glide across the water you will understand why. The spectacular voyage will give you magnificent views of mountain Lake District scenery, secluded bays and the many wooded islands as well as the beautiful and expensive houses and hotels dotted along the shores.
Finally, the boat docks at Bowness where your guide and minibus will be waiting to take you to your drop-off destinations at the end of the tour.
The English Lake District weather can change quickly, even in the summer months. Please bring a waterproof coat with a hood in case of rain or windy weather.
As there is some walking involved in the tour, some uphill and on uneven or wet terrain, please wear suitable, comfortable shoes.
This tour is not suitable for children under the age of 5.
No food or drink is included in the tour price.
Here is some more detailed information about the places you will be visiting on the tour.
Nestled in the scenic Leven Valley and open seven days a week, the Museum isn't just about cars. The entire collection is presented in a social context, with a host of rarities to awaken some special motoring memories including:
Malcolm & Donald Campbell's Bluebirds. Housed in its own unique building, the Campbell Bluebird Exhibition is a tribute to the racing career of Sir Malcolm and Donald Campbell. Highlights include full sized replicas of the 1935 Blue Bird car, 1939 Blue Bird Boat K4 and 1967 jet hydroplane Bluebird K7.
Intriguing local history displays illustrating key industries such as the Historic Blue Mill, Iron Works, Woodland Industries, Gunpowder Factories and the Dolly Blue Myth.
Historic Scenes. Our displays include many realistic mannequins, including a Woman's Land Army Girl with a 1940s Fordson tractor, Allied Forces with a WWII Willys Jeep and a 1920s Gangster evocative of America's prohibition era.
Memory Lane. Recreated scenes of a 1920's garages and 1950's café, period shop displays, early motoring in the Lake District and historic female fashion.
The café and gift shop are packed with goodies and things for enjoying now and when you get home.
Cartmel is a centuries old unspoilt village in an area recognised as one of Outstanding Natural Beauty. From here, walkers, ramblers, cyclists and countryside lovers are soon in landscapes of wonderful views to the not too distant fells of the Lake District and the sands and waters of Morecambe Bay on the edge of the Furness Peninsula.
It's not just the peace, tranquillity and historical interest which draw visitors to this, one of the oldest villages in the Lake District. Here, only a short walk from the village shops and eating places is the smallest National Hunt Racecourse in Britain whose Spring and Summer steeple chase meetings attract large crowds from countrywide. These are entertaining days when the village of Cartmel is full to bursting and the excitement of the racing together with refreshment tents, stalls and a fairground create a carnival atmosphere.
The 12th century Priory is a place of legends, myths and stories. With a history and heritage dating back centuries, it's safe to say Cartmel Priory has many a story to tell. Steeped in history and rich with culture, the church has undergone bouts of expansion, ruin and transformation to get to where it is today.
The earliest mention of Cartmel in historical records occurs almost 500 years before the foundations of Cartmel Priory were laid, when in around 680 AD the monks of Lindisfarne took ownership of the land. This Christian era remained until 1189 when William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke, founded Cartmel Priory.The Priory was saved at the time of the Dissolution of the Monasteries under Henry VIII in the early 1530s, owing to William Marshall being granted an altar in one of the Priory's chapels. The villagers protested that the Priory was in fact their parish church, and so it remains.
There are many unique features that make the Priory what it is today, and can be found both inside and outside the church. The unique square belfry tower constructed diagonally across the original tower is the only one like it in Britain, and original pieces of art by contemporary international sculptor Josefina de Vasconcellos can be found throughout the church.
The oldest parts of the Priory are the chancel, transepts, the south doorway, and part of the north wall of the nave. The door in the south west corner of the Priory is known as Cromwell's door, and is still marked with bullet holes said to have been the result of indignant villagers who opened fire on Oliver Cromwell's Roundhead troops when they stabled their horses in the nave.
The large and beautiful east window, which almost fills the east wall, still retains 15th century stained glass, containing medieval glass fragments that were painstakingly pieced together. The ancient choir stalls, parts of which date from around 1450, also fortunately still survive, with unique misericord seating. They probably replaced the medieval backs that had been damaged after the Dissolution, and still used in services today.
The Holker Estate is the home of the Cavendish family, a branch related to the owners of Chatsworth House in Derbyshire. The Estate is magnificently situated only a short distance from the expanse of Morecambe Bay and is set in exceptionally beautiful countryside, with gardens that merge into parkland, framed by the Lakeland hills.
Dating back to the early 1600's Holker Hall has been home to just three families with the Estate never having been sold but passing by inheritance through the family line. The House today dates mainly from the 1870's having been rebuilt after a disastrous fire. The style is neo-Elizabethan Gothic with work being carried out by the finest architects and craftsmen of the time., Inside you will find architectural, cultural and artistic treasures as well as family items from earlier generations to the present day. This gives a relaxed yet impressively stylish feel to the rooms and an overall atmosphere of the space and charm of a Victorian ststely home. There are no ropes or barriers in the Hall, allowing you to wander around at leisure.
Holker's stunning gardens are a living reflection of the imagination, inspiration and dedication of generations of owners and gardeners. At the centre are the dramatic formal gardens and from there, winding paths take you through a collection of rare and exotic plants and threes that thrive in the extraordinary micro-climate of the Cartmel Peninsula.
The highlights include The Elliptical garden, The Summer Garden, the spectacular Neptune Cascade, The Great Holker Lime planted early in the 17th century, the Sunken Garden, The Inigo Jones Statue and The Grotto.
You are welcome to explore the rolling expanses of grounds at Holker - there are acres of undulating parkland, wildflower meadow and pastures. Look out for the rare breed of Menil Fallow Deer. In the wildflower meadow is the Labyrinth, inspired by the design of a Hindi temple. There is also the Pagan Grove, an oval amphitheatre in fine turf, created in 2011 by renowned landscape architect Kim Wilkie.
Situated in the picturesque Leven Valley at the southern end of Windermere, The lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway is justifiably proud of is historic branch line over which they have had custody since 1970 when they took over its operation. Their small band of permanent staff and volunteers have worked tirelessly to protect and improve this unique and historic railway.
The Furness Railway was developed during the 1850's and 1860's, at the height of the Industrial Revolution, in order to transport the coal and iron ore deposits from mines in the coastal areas of Cumberland and the Furness district of Lancashire to the heavy industries of the North West and North East of England. Shares were purchased in the Windermere United Steam Yacht Company in 1867. The main revenue earner for the line was freight, this being coal for the Windermere steamers, iron ore for the Backbarrow Iron Works, and sulphur and saltpetre for the Black Beck and Low Wood gunpowder works. The traffic in the opposite direction was mainly pig iron, gunpowder, pit props, ultramarine 'blue' powder, wooden bobbins and livestock.
By 1872, the steamers of the United Windermere Steam Yacht Company had been purchased outright by the Furness Railway but unfortunately, at the same time the iron ore industry started to decline and, with it, the fortunes of the Furness Railway. At the turn of the century, with a more modern fleet of vessels on the lake, the Furness Railway was in an ideal position to encourage and carry train loads of day trippers and holiday-makers. The golden years of the branch had begun, and were to reach a peak just before the Great War. Today, the fortunes of the railway have gone full circle and every year it welcomes thousands of day trippers and holiday-makers just as it did over 100 years ago.
The railway also has a tea room, woodland play area, engine shed, gift shop, woodland walk, picnic area and a footbridge for amazing views of the loco's as the chuff and puff below.
Lakeside Station was built in 1869 as the terminus of the old Furness Railway. Although often described as steamers, the former British Rail owned boats are all in fact motor vessels, and are the MV Tern of 1891, the MV Teal of 1936, and the MV Swan of 1938. Tracing their origins back to Victorian days, the Windermere Lake Cruises steamers and launches still carry over 1.35 million visitors each year. The steamers have saloons, promenade decks, teashops and licensed bars.
To display the available dates for this tour please answer the questions below.
We can accept bookings up to 30 minutes before the departure time from your chosen pickup point, provided that we have availability.
You will not need to print anything out. Just book, read the confirmation email and wait at the pickup point!
No dates found for this tour
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)