Cumberland

Cottages here range from working farm settings to lakeside spots. Wallace Lane Farm Cottages, with its Nuthatch Cottage and Oak Tree Lodge, sits among working farmland, the kind of base where you wake up to fields rather than traffic. For something closer to the water, Lakes and Shores Retreat and Beny-Cot at Lakerigg put you within reach of the lakes themselves, while Bewick Lodge at Burnside Park and places like Latrigg View and Bianca Rose fill out a huge range of styles and sizes across the county, from cottages built for couples to those set up for larger family groups.

Market towns dot the county, and many cottages are set up for self-sufficiency, with kitchens geared towards cooking up whatever you have brought back from a local farm shop or butcher. Pubs in the surrounding villages tend towards hearty, unfussy food - the kind that suits a day spent on the hills - and towns within reach offer a wider spread of cafes and restaurants for evenings out.