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Out of the door and onto the hill

Cabins, cottages and lodges in the Lake District, Eryri, the Peak District, the Yorkshire Dales, Bannau Brycheiniog and Scotland. Beside each one are the walks and viewpoints within reach and how far away they are, so you can tell before you book which hills start from the door and which need the car.

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Storm light over Glen Coe, the road threading down the glen below the Three Sisters
Glen Coe from The Study. Malcolm Lightbody, via Unsplash.

Six regions

Scafell Pike from Wasdale

The Lake District

England's highest ground, and the 214 fells Wainwright described.

Scafell Pike, 978m · 2,623 stays · 24 walks

Yr Wyddfa by the Pyg Track

Eryri (Snowdonia)

The highest mountains south of the Highlands, with Cardigan Bay along their western edge.

Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon), 1,085m · 1,513 stays · 22 walks

Kinder Scout via Grindsbrook Clough

The Peak District

Gritstone edges and limestone dales, within an hour's travel of a third of England and Wales.

Kinder Scout, 636m · 1,062 stays · 14 walks

Malham

The Yorkshire Dales

Limestone scars, the Three Peaks and the long green dales between them.

Whernside, 736m · 688 stays · 9 walks

Llanddeusant

Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons)

Red sandstone escarpments, the highest ground in South Wales, and the waterfalls below them.

Pen y Fan, 886m · 426 stays · 8 walks

Liathach Traverse from Glen Torridon

Scotland

Britain's biggest mountains, and the only ones that keep snow into summer.

Ben Nevis, 1,345m · 788 stays · 42 walks

There is also an Alps section covering Switzerland, Austria, Germany and Liechtenstein.

Hot tubs with a hill behind them

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All 7,100 stays

Something to walk to

Aira Force and Gowbarrow

Aira Force and Gowbarrow

A National Trust waterfall walk above Ullswater, with a longer trail onto Gowbarrow Fell, near the shore of Wordsworth's daffodils.

  • 7.2 km
  • Moderate
Aberglaslyn Pass

Aberglaslyn Pass

A riverside path through the wooded gorge of the Afon Glaslyn, 5km there and back from Beddgelert, and one of the easiest outings in the village.

  • 5 km
  • 1 hr 30 min
  • Easy
Bleaklow Head and the B-29 wreck

Bleaklow Head and the B-29 wreck

A rough moorland circuit from the Snake Pass onto Bleaklow Head, crossing Doctor's Gate to the wrecked B-29 bomber at Higher Shelf Stones.

  • 15.4 km
  • 470 m up
  • 5 hr 50 min moving
  • Hard
Buckden Pike from Buckden

Buckden Pike from Buckden

A 702m summit above upper Wharfedale, climbed from Buckden to a wartime memorial cross and back by Starbotton and the Dales Way.

  • 17.1 km
  • 576 m up
  • 6 hr 40 min moving
  • Moderate

All 119 walks

Views you can drive to

Not everyone in the car wants a six-hour day, and some people cannot have one. These are the places where you park, walk a few minutes, and get the view anyway.

Aysgarth Falls

Aysgarth Falls

Three limestone-stepped falls on the River Ure, with a firm, wide path from the National Park car park to the Upper and Middle Falls.

  • Step-free
Cairngorm Ski Road and Coire Cas

Cairngorm Ski Road and Coire Cas

A public road from Glenmore to a car park at 635 metres below Cairn Gorm, with views back over Strathspey.

  • Drive to it
  • Step-free
  • 2 min from the car
  • View all round
Castlerigg Stone Circle

Castlerigg Stone Circle

A Neolithic stone circle on a hilltop plateau near Keswick, with a 360-degree view of surrounding fells reached in a couple of minutes on foot.

  • Drive to it
  • Step-free
  • 2 min from the car
  • View all round

All 22 viewpoints

Bases worth a week

Where you sleep decides what the week can reach, and a base you can get to by train on a Friday evening is a different week from one that needs a car every day.

Ambleside

Ambleside

Windermere's head, and the easiest Lakeland base without a car.

Windermere station, 7.8km by road
Braithwaite

Braithwaite

Coledale's village, under Grisedale Pike and the Whinlatter road.

Penrith station
Broughton-in-Furness

Broughton-in-Furness

Cumbria's smallest town, a market square beside the Duddon.

Foxfield station, 3.9km by road
Buttermere

Buttermere

Two lakes, one village, and Honister at the top of the pass.

Workington station, 29km by road

All 73 bases

Base-and-explore trips

One base, a set number of nights, and a plan for each day. Each trip says what it skips and who it does not suit, which is the part that stops somebody booking the wrong week.

All 14 trips