An award-winning “designer-chic” hotel in the Lake District is aiming to literally double its guests this summer through launching a unique “Two’s a Couple, Four’s a Delight” offer.

Having recognised that many first-time guests then go on to return to the hotel with friends and relatives, the four-star Rothay Garden hotel in Grasmere has introduced a special incentive to groups of friends and relatives who decide to visit the Lake District together.

This summer (for short breaks and holidays in July and August), guests who book to stay with friends or relatives at Rothay Garden (in two or more of the hotel’s luxurious bedrooms or Loft Suites), will be greeted with a sparkling complimentary bottle of Roederer Champagne and four flutes in the hotel’s lounge on check-in, to ensure that the break gets off to a flying start.

The “Two’s a Couple, Four’s a Delight” champagne offer is even valid on the hotel’s popular Summer Saver rates, which give generous discounts off four and seven-night stays at Rothay Garden.

An innovative plan of cut-price deals to boost tourism in the Lake District has got off to a flying start.

The first phase of the campaign by the Lakes Hospitality Association (LHA), where visitors were invited to stay on any Sunday night in January, or the first Sunday in February, from just £9.99 per person including bed and breakfast, has received almost 1,000 bookings.

The promotion was introduced to show tourists that the Lakes is very much open for business.

The association has now launched the second phase which will run until March 28, offering bed and breakfast at the rate of £29.99 per person.

A Windermere couple have backed their confidence in the region’s tourism appeal by investing £500,000 in revamping two hotels.

Will Howarth, and his wife Lyn, have splashed £250,000 on a refurbishment of the Windermere Boutique Hotel – formerly called 21.

The couple have upgraded all of the establishment’s 12 bedrooms with contemporary fittings and have created a more spacious lounge and a residents’ bar.

A similar amount has been pumped into the Aphrodites Lodge, in Bowness, creating a new spa area by enclosing an open-air swimming pool.

“Obviously the recession and indeed the floods have not helped the tourism industry here in the Lakes over the last year or so but we remain extremely confident about the future of our two hotels in Windermere,” said Mr Howarth. “That is why we are prepared to invest such considerable sums of money in them.”

People who have booked hotels in the Lake District over the weekend of March 20th and 21st are in luck because the National Trust has announced that it will not charge entry to any of its sites over the weekend.

Speaking ahead of the British Tourism Week, co-chair of the project Bernard Donoghue highlighted the offer, which coincides with the event.

“Regardless to whether you are a member or not, just go along to your local National Trust property and it’s free of charge,” he noted.

Anyone visiting the Lake District that weekend could find that a trip around some of the sights associated with Beatrix Potter is the best way to take advantage of the offer.

The National Trust owns Hill Top, the children’s author’s house, which still holds all her belongings exactly as she left them.

A gallery and museum about her life is located in the nearby village of Hawkshead, where fans of Beatrix Potter’s characters can see some of the original illustrations from her books

Over 150 brides travelled to Inn on the Lake from London and the South coast, to attend their most spectacular wedding fayre. In the hotel grounds a huge marquee was launched as a new venue that can be hired for weddings in the gardens – to accommodate up to 200 guests.

Inn on the Lake General Manager Gary Wilson said “The views from the hotel are renowned so it is the perfect place to have a lakeside wedding, with the new Gazebo licensed for civil ceremonies and the wedding marquee”.

Brides stepped into the marquee which revealed a taste of how it could look on their wedding day with fantastic table settings, a chocolate fountain on display and unspoilt views down the to lake. This was also the venue for the fashion show which included three Penrith wedding specialists – Tilly’s for Mother of the Bride outfits, Edwards for Menswear and Kokoa Brides – Cumbria’s newest Bridal house which opened in Penrith recently.

There was however, one exhibit that wowed brides to be, even more – the new ‘Victorian style’ gazebo set in the garden close to the water’s edge. Beverley Kelso, Wedding Co-ordinator at The Inn on the Lake part of the Lake District Hotels Ltd group said “It is a unique place to exchange vows in one of the prettiest settings in the Lakes and allows us to stay one step ahead of other venues. It has already become THE Lake District wedding venue of choice for brides who have booked to get married here this summer and is set to entice many more in the coming months. We already have one of the most photographed jetties in the country – a fantastic place for stunning pictures, and now, our brides can marry outside in the gazebo, overlooking the lake, the jetty and the mountains. There is no other place like it in the whole of the Lakes.”

Anyone interested in finding out more about the wedding gazebo should contact Beverley Kelso at Inn on the lake on 017684 82444

The Riverside Hotel at Under Loughrigg, Ambleside, has been listed among the top ten B&Bs on the globe based on reviews posted on the TripAdvisor website.

It was placed ninth best internationally and among the top three in Europe in the Traveler’s Choice Awards.

Meanwhile, the Summer Hill Country House, also in Ambleside, finished tenth in Europe in the best B&B category.

“We were really surprised and delighted with it,” said Dave Milne, who runs the Riverside with his wife Brenda.

“It’s a bit of a reward because we’ve been here nine years and it’s taken that long to refurbish Riverside and build up its reputation.

“It was pretty run-down when we first bought it. It was stuck in the 70s and 80s. It’s a lovely Victorian house so we’ve tried to give it a blend of bringing it up to date while keeping its character.”

It is this character which has given the Riverside such a fantastic reputation. Out of 246 reviews on TripAdvisor, 241 gave the B&B the maximum rating of five stars out of five.

These sparkling reviews have led to a lot of repeat business.

“The comments we receive are mainly to do with how friendly and homely Riverside feels,” said Mr Milne. “People always mention the location because we are right on the river but we’re also only ten minutes walk away from Ambleside.”

The couple bought the B&B in 2001 – the year when the foot-and-mouth crisis began.

“When the first case of foot-and-mouth happened we thought: ‘What on earth have we done here?’ “It was a very difficult start because we left a comfortable life in London to come here.”

Another feature of a stay at The Riverside is the food which includes fresh fruit and smoothies for breakfast and home-made bread.

Leaving a busy urban life to set up a B&B in the country seems to be a theme developing in Ambleside. Mike and Patsy Derry joined forces with their close friends Robert and Zoe Ashworth to set up the Summer Hill Country House.

“Mike and I were teachers and Robert was a GP, so we were used to urban life,” Patsy said.

“It was one of those things you talk about and never really do, but we decided to bite the bullet and move to the Lakes.

“We’re very thrilled and excited to be up there among the best in Europe, particularly because we have only been open for two years.”

The success of Riverside and the Summer Hill is expected to increase tourism in Cumbria.

“This is not only a boost to domestic, but also overseas tourism,” said a spokesperson for Cumbria Tourism.

“It will raise our profile at this crucially important time of year as people begin to plan their short breaks and holidays.”

A Lake District campsite has been given the go-ahead to make major improvements.

The National Trust applied to the Lake District National Park Authority to make the changes to Low Wray Campsite on the west shore of Windermere.

The trust applied to relocate the shop/reception to an existing building in the centre of the site; convert the existing reception/shop into an additional staff bedroom; and connect two halves of the site by a new footbridge across the river.

The trust also proposed to relocate vehicle barriers to alleviate congestion around the existing hamlet of Low Wray; improve access within the site by a boardwalk to the new reception; improve existing parking areas adjacent to Vic’s Meadows; and relocate the children’s play area closer to the new reception.

Mairi Lock, the planning officer who dealt with the application, said that all the proposed works were “closely integrated with existing uses” and all were part of required improvements to the camp site “to upgrade facilities and assist in the operation of the site.”

The only new build was the bridge and the board walk.

Ms Lock added that it would not have an adverse impact on neighbouring properties but, because of the improvements, “could result in benefits to residents of properties close to the entrance of the site.”

Hiking enthusiasts seeking a luxury break on some of Britain’s most beautiful walking trails may wish to book a stay at a hotel that has won back its place in the prestigious Michelin Guide book.

The Samling Hotel in the Lake District has been awarded a star by the hotel and restaurant reviewer, the News & Star reports.

Hollywood icon Tom Cruise and David and Victoria Beckham are said to be some of the establishment’s most famous fans.

Michelin Guide editor Derek Bulming tells the newspaper: ‘There is now a greater geographical spread of starred restaurants and the inspectors will continue to seek out establishments serving particularly good food, wherever they are situated.’

The Samling could be perfectly located for people who wish to relax in luxurious surroundings by night while taking an Ordnance Survey map out and hitting the walking trails of the National Park by day.

Covering 2 292 sq km, the Lake District is Britain’s largest National Park.

Read more about the Samling Hotel here

Ordnance surveys

The picturesque Lake District is one of few places in the UK that never loses its charm all year round.

In fact, the winter months bring an almost mystical appeal to the stunning north-west region with fascinating walks and attractions still going strong in January.

As England’s largest National Park, the area provides the perfect environment for a host of activities from rock climbing and paragliding to more gentler activities such as a boat trip on lake Windermere, England’s longest lake – an Windermere hotels are never short in abundance.

Boasting Scafell Pike – England’s highest mountain, and Wastwater – England’s deepest lake, ‘The Lakes’ offers some of the UK’s most stunning scenery, inspiring artists such as Turner and Ruskin to some of the country’s best loved writers, such as William Wordsworth and Beatrix Potter.

With such a wealth of beauty, culture and hospitality it isn’t hard to see why the Lake District remains the perfect setting to explore and enjoy – even in the crisp winter period. If the magical fell walks aren’t your thing, there’s still so much to do outdoors so don’t let the snow put you off!

Lake District hotels feature some fantastic off-season discounts so here are a few ideas for things to do whilst there.

Go Ape!

Climb the trees, slide across high wires, crawl through tunnels, cross rope bridges, walk the planks and zip down to the ground! Go Ape!, in the Grizedale Forest, is an award-winning high wire forest adventure course of rope bridges, tarzan swings and zip slides up to 40 feet up in the trees! Opening in March 2008, the new Go Ape Whinlatter, go on give it a try!

Aquaseiling

Those in search of a serious rush to the head should try aquaseiling – abseiling down a fast-flowing waterfall. Aquaseiling is a sheer adrenalin activity in awesome surroundings and can form part of a longer scrambling journey.

Via Ferrata

At the Honister Slate Mine, high up in the Borrowdale Valley, the new Via Ferrata lets you experience the mountains in a novel way. Secured to a fixed cable, you follow a Victorian miner’s route along the craggy cliff-face of Fleetwith Pike using steel ladders and solid bridges to reach the 2126ft summit, where you can gaze at uninterrupted views.

Ghyll scrambling

Another physically challenging organised activity is ghyll scrambling. Wearing protective clothing, you slide, jump, scramble and slither your way along the course of a stream, tackling all the obstacles you come across. Expect to get wet!

An appeal for Cumbrian hoteliers to let rooms cheaply received scores of responses after just a few hours.

The Open for Business campaign aims to convince holidaymakers that the Lake District is still able to provide good holiday accommodation despite recent poor weather.

The scheme will offer readers of regional newspapers the chance to book a room at participating venues for a fee of £9.99, to cover administration fees.

Organisers, the Lakes Hospitality Association and Cumbria Tourism, said more than 50 hoteliers signed up to the campaign after an appeal for participants was launched on Wednesday.

Lakes Hospitality Association chairman Jonathan Denby said: “The Open for Business campaign is a gesture of goodwill from the Lake District.

“It will welcome customers back and show that the roads are clear, the shops are open and the hotels and attractions are ready to welcome visitors again.”

Mr Denby added: “We are very pleased that the whole industry seems to be behind the campaign. We still have the beautiful countryside and the wonderful attractions. The Lakes are at their loveliest this time of year and we are looking forward to welcoming our customers back.”