Another Place The Lake, Exclusive Hire

Lovely hotel in a stunning location. The only minor drawback was some noise from the room next door, as we could hear more than we would have liked. However, we would still happily stay here again. The food and the service was excellent, both at the hotel and the nearby Brackenrigg Inn (which is part of the same group). One thing to note is the road crossing from the Brackenrigg Inn to the hotel’s back entrance – the traffic moves quite fast, which was a bit unnerving despite using the newly installed path, especially with two dogs. It’s also a bit of a walk to and from Pooley Bridge, and while there’s an option to avoid the road by taking the Ullswater Way path, it adds quite a bit to the walk.

Really great place to unwind. The staff are brilliant: attentive, friendly, and knowledgeable about the local area. Being on the banks of Ullswater meant we could swim every day. The indoor pool and outdoor hot tub were also well used. We booked some guided swims with Colin and they were amazing! We went on the waterfall swim and the moon/stargazing swim and both were great fun. Colin’s entertaining and encouraging for new open water swimmers. Highly recommend that you book these in your stay. Room was spacious and well serviced (we could pop out for 10 mins and it would be magically cleaned while we were gone!), although in our room (12) we could hear a bit of noise from next door. My wife found our bed quite hard but I liked it, so 🤷 Food and wine was nice. Vegan burger was good although the bun fell apart due to the avocado paste. A bit of test eating by the chef is needed here! EV charging on site too. TV was not smart. So couldn’t watch Netflix 🙁

We did not stay at AP, but whilst on 1/2 term, we were passing so dropped in for brunch, coffee and to take a look. The hotel is beautiful and clearly someone with taste, style and a big budget has overseen the conversion of the old building and development of the grounds. The spa, bar, reception and site are beautiful and lead down to the lake and views across Ullswater which are stunning. We fed our children and ourselves in the bar, choosing from the daytime menu. The food was nice, although nothing stellar, there was a reasonable selection and the coffees we ordered were excellent - always a plus for us! The staff serving us were friendly and accommodating. And after our meal we enjoyed a brief walk round the grounds and down to the lake. AP is a high end hotel and aimed at a particular clientele so this is obviously reflected in the room rates and prices. But even if you are not staying here, it's worth taking a look at the property.