The Terrace, Windermere is a unique row of Grade II listed large holiday homes, located in the heart of Windermere village but within very private grounds. Designed by Augustus (AWN) Pugin, these cottages are believed to date from 1849, and were originally the railway cottages at Windermere Station.
Today, the three cottages - Alice Howe, Bannerrigg and Boston House - are available as three individual houses (each sleeping 14), as two houses (for 28) or altogether for a big group of up to 42, the perfect base for a fantastic self-catering break in the Lake District.
The houses are all individually decorated but share a love of cosy farmhouse style with full-on 21st century comforts. You'll find kitchens warmed by Agas to come down to in the morning, big farmhouse tables for those big cooked Lake District breakfasts, white cotton bed linen, four-poster beds, Bose iPod docks in the living rooms and dining rooms, a high-definition home cinema, PS2s, lots of DVDs and sink-into leather sofas.
Outside the school holidays, the owner takes weekend bookings, which are remarkably good value when the cost is divided by a large group. So if you’re planning a special birthday celebration, why not invite 40 friends for a party with a difference?!
Named after the small hill behind the house, Alice Howe sleeps 14 comfortably in seven bedrooms with seven ensuite bathrooms. Each bedroom has an iPod dock, TV and white cotton bedding, and several have DVD players. The house has two living rooms, so the children can base themselves in one, and you have peaceful adult time in the other. The front room has an open fire, leather sofas, TV, DVD player and hi-fi etc. The other has a TV, DVD jukebox with around 200 films, big sofas and a wood burning stove. Down in the cellar you'll find a slate bed pool table. The dining room has a good size table where you can entertain all 14, and an open fire surrounded by a Pugin-designed fireplace, similar to the one he designed for Westminster Palace.
Alice Howe is also ideal for upmarket stag and hen breaks, with its high proportion of twin bedrooms.
Romantics may prefer Boston House, which has two four-poster beds and one half-tester. It sleeps 14 comfortably in seven bedrooms, with seven ensuite or private bath/shower rooms. In all other respects it matches the other two houses, though its recent makeover in the kitchen - solid oak units, Lakeland slate work surfaces, wine cooler and 7-ring twin oven range cooker - may have surpassed them! Other features include large flatscreens, hi-tech equipment in the bedrooms, an eye-catching fireplace and a 14-seat hi-definition cinema.
The rear courtyard looks out to Orrest Head where Alfred Wainwright took his first view of the Lake District - a view that changed his life forever! The garden has a huge teak table for meals outside, and surrounding walls that protect it from the wind.
The rooms in Bannerrigg are significantly bigger than in the other two houses, allowing two large family rooms which each sleep four. Children especially love bedroom number four, which has four single beds, a large TV and PS2, and is hidden away on the top floor. The house is similarly very well equipped, with a big farmhouse kitchen (gas Aga, granite worktops, American fridge with ice maker etc).
The living room has leather sofas and chairs for 16 gathered around the open fire and, for the musical in your party, there's a pianola which doubles up as a piano for singsongs.
The dining room is flooded with natural light from two large, stone mullioned windows. It has a huge table with 14 cushioned seats and a quality hi-fi with iPod dock. Out in the garden is a hot tub.
To summarise the sleeping arrangements: Alice Howe: 4 double, 2 twins, one set of bunks; Bannerrigg: 3 double, one double plus twin, one room for 4; Boston House: 4 double, 2 twins, one set of bunks.
There 16 bathrooms altogether, either ensuite or very close to bedrooms.
Each house has a large dining room with table and chairs for 14. If the properties are booked together, the owners can configure Bannerrigg to seat 28 by swapping the lounge into a dining room. This requires prior notice to the owners (not the booking agent).
Catering in-house is not available, but several local companies can supply evening meals. Tesco Direct can deliver groceries.
The Terrace is totally tuned into the 21st century, with TV/DVD players in nearly all the bedrooms, and Hi-fis, CD players and iPod docks in all the communal rooms.
Outside Bannerrigg there is an eight-seat hot tub in its own building - lovely to come home to after a day on the mountains.
The Terrace is right in the heart of Windermere, yet removed from the hustle of the town in a very secluded location. It’s a 500-yard walk to the centre of the village and even less to Booths supermarket. Lake Windermere and all its boating activities is a mile away.
Airport: Manchester (1hr 15 mins)
Station: Windermere (500 yards)
Windermere (‘mere’ means ‘lake’) is the largest natural lake in England, and lies completely within the Lake District National Park. It has been an incredibly popular place for holidays and second homes since 1847 when the Kendal and Windermere Railway built a branch line to it.
Over the years, the little town has become merged with the older lakeside town of Bowness-on-Windermere, though the two have quite separate centres. There are not only museums to visit that give fascinating accounts of local history, but also lots of activities based on and around the lake. Boats leave from the piers in Bowness and sail around the lake, many calling at Ambleside or at Lakeside where there is a restored railway.
Windermere is largely surrounded by the foot hills of the Lake District which provide pleasant low-level walks; to the north and north-east the higher fells of central Lakeland commence. The 15-minute walk to the summit of Orrest Head begins right outside The Terrace.
Restaurants and pubs are a two minute stroll away.
From Windermere station you can catch trains and buses to Manchester, Manchester Airport, and the West Coast main line trains.
A road ferry service runs across the lake from a point south of Bowness on the eastern side of the lake to Far Sawrey on the western side of the lake. This service forms part of the B5285.
For each house:
3 night breaks: £1,380 year round
4-night midweek breaks from £700
One week £1,300 (low season)
£1,500 (mid season)
£1,960 (high season)
For half term and Christmas prices please enquire.