Bucket list experience:
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The Lake District is indelibly linked with the ‘Romantic Movement’, the generation of 18th-century poets who drew inspiration from nature and the world around them.
Chief among them was William Wordsworth, who was born in the Lake District and spent much of his childhood and adult life here.
Several sites associated with the poet can be visited, including three of his former homes and his childhood school, as well as his last resting place in the peaceful churchyard of St Oswald’s in Grasmere.
For a general overview of Wordsworth and the Romantic Movement, head for the Wordsworth Museum, next to Dove Cottage.
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Destination Guide >Grasmere, Cumbria, United Kingdom (UK)
Take a guided tour around Wordsworth’s charming cottage near Grasmere to get a fascinatingly personal insight into the poet’s life and times – and don’t miss the brilliant museum next door.
Best for ages: 180+ | £12
Ambleside, Cumbria, United Kingdom (UK)
The region’s most picturesque and charming village. Grasmere is set on the shores of its eponymous lake and cradled by green fields and fells. William Wordsworth is buried in the churchyard of St Oswald’s – you can see the poet’s tombstone.
Best for ages: 13+ | Free | 3 hours
Hawkshead, Cumbria, United Kingdom (UK)
Wordsworth attended the little village school in Hawkshead. Learn about the poet’s early life and education on a guided tour, and also look out for the school desk where he mischievously carved his name.
Best for ages: 18+ | £4 | 3 hours
Rydal, Cumbria, United Kingdom (UK)
Wordsworth’s grand family home between Ambleside and Grasmere is an essential stop: it’s full of memorabilia, and offers an intriguing glimpse of the Wordsworth family’s daily life in the Lakes.
Best for ages: 18+ | £5
Our selection of the best Viator tours of this attraction or activity
Windermere
£77 | Rating 5 / 5 [6 ratings]
Tour supplied by:
Windermere
£155 | Rating 4.87 / 5 [8 ratings]
Tour supplied by:
Our writer’s picks of the best places to stay near this experience, closest first
Kirkby Stephen, Cumbria, United Kingdom (UK)
A lovingly restored 19th-century castle that’s also a family home and a friendly hotel. It’s near the market town of Kirkby Stephen, handy for exploring the eastern Lakes and the Eden Valley.
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Great Langdale, Cumbria, United Kingdom (UK)
The Lakeland version of a deluxe ski lodge, offering supremely plush rooms, a lavish spa and a very private location on a Langdale estate. It’s also adults-only – making this an ideal place for couples looking for a place to pamper themselves.
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Grasmere, Cumbria, United Kingdom (UK)
A large, lakeside hotel not far from Grasmere, with a variety of rooms to suit all kinds of visitors – families, couples, walkers and weekend breakers will all find a happy home here.
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Grasmere, Cumbria, United Kingdom (UK)
One of the very best of the Lake District’s boutique hotels, a reinvented country mansion, brimming with wit, style and invention. In prime position for exploring the Lakes..
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Destination guides including or relevant to this experience
Cumbria, United Kingdom (UK)
Imposing mountains, wild landscapes, tranquil lakes and picturesque towns combine to make the Lake District uniquely beautiful, and one of the best places in Britain for walking, climbing, boating and biking.
