Mealsgate

Hotels in Mealsgate itself are scarce, as the hamlet is little more than a scattering of houses along the old Roman road, but its position makes it a sensible base for exploring both the northern Lake District and the Solway coast without the crowds of the central fells. Nearby Wigton has a small choice of inns and guesthouses, while the villages around Caldbeck and Hesket Newmarket offer traditional B&Bs and farmhouse accommodation set among working farmland and fellside scenery. For a wider range of hotels, including options closer to the high fells and Derwentwater, Keswick is around fifteen miles south and makes an easy day-trip base with far more choice.

Booking a stay in this area suits visitors who want walking, birdwatching or a slower-paced break rather than nightlife or big attractions. Many properties are converted farm buildings or period cottages, reflecting the region's agricultural character, and several sit within a short drive of both the Solway Coast AONB and the Caldbeck Fells, giving access to two quite different landscapes — saltmarsh and coastline on one side, rugged fell country on the other — from a single base.

Mealsgate itself is tiny, but it makes a useful, quiet base for exploring the northern Lake District and the Solway coastline, both a short drive away.

• Caldbeck village — a handsome fellside village about six miles south, with the restored Priest's Mill (now home to a café and small shops) and the churchyard of St Kentigern's, where the huntsman John Peel is buried beneath an ornate gravestone.
• The Howk — a limestone gorge and waterfall just outside Caldbeck, reached by a short riverside walk that passes the ruins of a 19th-century bobbin mill.
• Solway Coast AONB — a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty running along the Cumbrian shore of the Solway Firth, known for its raised beaches, saltmarsh and exceptional birdwatching.
• Bassenthwaite Lake and Skiddaw — the northernmost of the Lake District's lakes and one of England's highest fells, both within easy reach to the south for walking and watersports.
• Hesket Newmarket — a small fellside village around two miles from Caldbeck with a village green and the Old Crown, one of the country's early community-owned pubs.
• Wigton — the nearest market town, with everyday shops, supermarkets and services for a longer stay in the area.

The Watermill Café at Priest's Mill in Caldbeck, set beside the old mill race, is a well-regarded stop for lunch and cake after a walk to The Howk. In Hesket Newmarket, the Old Crown is a long-standing community-owned pub with its own small brewery. Wigton offers a broader spread of everyday cafés, takeaways and pubs for those staying in the wider area.

The countryside around Mealsgate, straddling the boundary between the Solway Coast AONB and the northern Lake District fells, is well suited to campers who want space and quiet rather than resort-style facilities. As everywhere in England, wild camping on open land requires the landowner's permission — it is not a general legal right outside a handful of specific areas of the Lake District — so pitching up on fellside or marshland without asking first should be avoided. Fortunately the area has a decent scatter of proper campsites and small touring parks, particularly around Wigton and towards Bassenthwaite and Skiddaw, where pitches often come with direct views of the northern fells.

Sites in this part of Cumbria tend to be smaller and simpler than the big holiday parks further south in the Lake District, ranging from basic touring and tent pitches on working farms to slightly larger parks with electric hook-ups and amenity blocks. Some, particularly the pop-up and seasonal sites near Orthwaite and the Caldbeck fells, lean towards an off-grid feel with minimal facilities, which suits campers after a genuinely quiet fellside pitch. Glamping options — shepherd's huts, pods and the like — are increasingly available across the wider Wigton and Solway Coast area for those who want a taste of the outdoors without full camping kit.

The best camping season here runs from late spring to early autumn, when the ground is drier and the long evenings suit walks up onto Skiddaw or along the coast. Come prepared for changeable weather even in summer, since this stretch of Cumbria faces the Solway Firth and catches weather off the Irish Sea; a good waterproof groundsheet and warm layers are worth packing whatever the season. Midges can be an issue near water and rough grassland in high summer, so insect repellent is a sensible addition to the kit list.