Why you should book with us

10 great reasons to come on tour with us

• It’s easy — just book and go — no route planning, no sat nav, no parking fees, and no white-knuckle moments on seriously narrow Lake District roads. Just book your tour, get on board, and leave everything to us. We know exactly where to go, when to go, and how to make the most of every moment. You just sit back and enjoy the view.
• Small groups, big experiences — every tour is deliberately limited to just 6 or 7 guests. We designed it this way from the start — we even chose our vehicles with this in mind. Small groups mean you are never just a face in a crowd. You get to talk to your guide, ask questions, hear the stories properly, and share the experience with a handful of like-minded people rather than a coachload of strangers.
• Genuinely local guides — we are all local to the Lake District and have spent years here exploring, researching, and uncovering hidden gems, secret viewpoints, fascinating history, and the best places to eat and stay. We don’t read from a script. We share a genuine, deep passion for this landscape and we cannot wait to show it to you.
• Guides educated to Masters and PhD level — our guides all had careers before joining English Lakes Tours, and bring remarkably broad and varied backgrounds to their work. All are educated to Masters or PhD level. This is not a job anyone fell into — it is something everyone here chose because they love it. That enthusiasm is impossible to fake and our guests feel it every time.
• Professionally trained and exceptionally well informed — we are trained by one of the world’s leading guide training companies to keep you safe, well looked after, and thoroughly entertained. Our ongoing research is supported by our own company library of over 6,500 books, online academic journals, university library resources, and our own growing archive of Lake District images and historical records. This depth of knowledge is what makes our tours exceptional.
• We genuinely care about your experience — we listen carefully to every piece of feedback we receive and use it to make our tours better. Your time with us matters to us enormously. With over 1,000 five-star reviews from guests around the world, we think that comes through — but we never stop trying to improve.
• Unique tours that actually do what they say — our tours are genuinely unique. The breathtaking Lake District countryside is the backdrop to everything we do, but what makes us different is that every tour has real depth and substance. Our Beatrix Potter tours are truly about Beatrix Potter. Our Brontë tours genuinely explore the lives of the Brontë sisters. Our scenery tours are built around the most spectacular landscapes in England. We don’t use catchy titles to hook you in and then disappoint. We go to the places, tell you the stories, share the facts, show you the things other tour companies miss, and give you those genuine “Wow” moments — all in friendly, comfortable style.
• Constantly updated and improved — we are not a company that designed a tour years ago and left it unchanged. Every tour is regularly refreshed — our vehicles, our technology, our knowledge, and our safety standards are all kept up to date. Our minibuses have phone charging points and Wi-Fi on board, so you can share those “Wow” moments with the people back home the moment they happen.
• You always know what to expect — unlike many tour descriptions that are deliberately vague, ours tell you exactly what you will see and why it matters. We tell you the highlights, the itinerary, the best photo spots, and the stories behind every location before you even book. Visiting a list of places without understanding them is like watching a film with no sound — our guides are the soundtrack that makes everything make sense.
• We give something back — we are passionate about supporting the Lake District, not just benefiting from it. We are corporate and individual members of more than 20 local charities, organisations, and societies. We believe that if this landscape gives so much to our guests — and to us — the least we can do is give something back in return.

Booking from the US — simple and secure

Booking from America is straightforward. Our secure online booking system accepts all major credit and debit cards, and you receive instant confirmation the moment your booking is complete. No waiting, no back-and-forth emails, no uncertainty. Everything you need to plan your Lake District visit is right here.

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Planning your trip from the United States? Our American Visitors Guide covers everything you need to know — getting here from London or Manchester, the UK ETA requirement, driving, tipping, currency, and what to pack. Ready to choose a tour? Browse all our Lake District tours.