Macdonald Leeming House

One of our top picks in Watermillock. A Regency house overlooking Ullswater, the Macdonald Leeming House has an award-winning restaurant and views of the Cumbrian Fells. It is a 15-minute drive from the M6 motorway.

The en-suite bedrooms are decorated in a traditional style and all have flat-screen TVs and seating areas. Some rooms have balconies with lake views.

The Regency Restaurant has an AA Rosette Award and serves modern British cuisine. The conservatory and terrace offer a more relaxed setting for informal lunches and dinners.

The hotel has 22 acres of grounds and offers croquet on the lawn and private fishing on the river. Indoors, there is a drawing room, library and sitting room with log fires in the winter.

Leeming House features a private helipad. Penrith is 7.5 miles away and Aira Force, the waterfall Wordsworth wrote about, is 3 miles away.