This flagship hostel on Windermere offers backpackers and families a millionaire’s view for the price of a bunk – plus homemade cake
The Youth Hostels Association got a bargain in the 1970s when it paid £71,000 for a terrace of four small Victorian hotels at the head of Windermere. On this coveted shore lined with millionaires’ villas and country house hotels, Ambleside YHA is a prime chunk of waterside property, offering a rich man’s view for the price of a dorm bed. Only a small car park lies between its front door and the lake’s gently lapping waves: you can sip your morning coffee on the jetty with your feet dangling over the water (at least, you could if it wasn’t January).
Behind its dour 19th-century facade a bright, refurbished reception area welcomes guests into a flagship of 21st-century hostelling. A poster at reception advertises free daily yoga sessions; there’s homemade sponge cake on a cake stand on the bar of the lake-view restaurant, alongside craft beers and Cumbrian real ales. In the dining area, where retro prints of Lake District fells hang on pale grey walls, the Scandi-style canteen tables are shared by young families, walking groups and international backpackers.
from Travel | The Guardian ift.tt/2jfWLXI
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