Lake District

Park your motorhome on a site and get a bus timetable 

Hi Paul

We visit the Lake District regularly. We usually stay at Troutbeck Head Club site which is about 10 miles from Keswick and just off the A66 it’s a nice site with great views but as far as I know I don’t think there is any town nearby within walking distance being caravanners we have our car with us so can get around ok I wouldn’t really recommend driving around the lakes in a motorhome as some of the roads are narrow and parking may be an issue. With that in mind a good site for you may be the C&CC site at Keswick which is a 5 minute walk from the town and near the bus route so would be handy for you to get around the area. If you are looking for somewhere for a nice meal at a good price try the Kirkstone aim which is a great little pub at the top of the Kirkstone inn and has a large car park across the road so you could park your motorhome there no bother and the views are great. The sites I have mentioned are both easy to get to from the M6 and A66.

Hope this helps 

The Lakes is a big area! Plan your stay when there’s no half term or bank holidays (all the world and his wife also descend on the Lakes!)

The popular and more ‘touristy’ areas are Windermere, Coniston and Keswick. Do you cycle? Walk or Fell walk? If you want quieter sites, head to the west coast but wherever you travel be mindful that most A roads are generally ok but some have narrow spots, particularly when near villages. All the CAMC Sites are good and then there’s the CC&C sites, which are equally as good. The more remote areas offer CL’s, some of which are great but care will be needed navigating to some of them. Always a good idea to follow the site information and not rely on sat nav. Wherever you go, just enjoy it and don’t forget your wet weather gear 👍

If you don't want to use your motorhome to get about then the site at Coniston is a walk away from the town along the lakeside with public transport.

Personally out of the 3 places you mention I would head for Keswick. The club site at Borrowdale is the one we use but it does require you to use your own facilities and is a bit of a knuckle ride into it if you are inexperienced. Once in there though you could quite easily spend the whole 7 days getting about on public transport or Shank's Pony. There is a ferry service that you can walk down to from site and catch either clockwise to Keswick or anti clockwise and hop off on the other side of the lake to access the hills there. You can also catch a bus that passes right outside the club site and this will take you into Keswick or as far as Buttermere. You can also just walk straight out of the site and up Cat Bells and onwards to the hills around that area. The opportunities for walking won't be exhausted in a week.

If you don't fancy that site then join the C&CC club as they have a site in Keswick town itself right on the lakeside, which does flood from time to time but allows you to walk straight into town and catch any bus you want from there plus the ferry terminals.

One other possibility is an independent site that I'll post a link to. This is about a mile walk into Keswick but does allow you instant access to the hills on the east side of Derwentwater Lake.

Even if you are not a serious hillwalker the scenery around this area is some of the best I've seen anywhere.

I'll leave others to extol the virtues of Windermere (accessible by bus from Keswick😂) and Coniston but for me I would head for Keswick if given just 1 choice.

https://www.ukcampsite.co.uk/sites/details.asp?revid=1028

The three places mentioned by the OP are well connected by very good local bus services. Keswick, for first timers probably offers the best access to a variety of places including the lake launches. Best to book early, the sites in Keswick are very popular! 

+1 for the C&CC site at Keswick. If you enjoy tranquility, take care with larger sites in popular locations - some can be a bit like ‘party central’ at the weekends. Hillcroft Park at Pooley Bridge on Ullswater would be a good example.

Even better, look on line for bus services before you book a site

Another fan here of TH. Yes you're right the nearest town is 16 miles away either left or right at the A66 turn off for the site. There are buses there to either but it a 20 minutes walk. In summer there, or was, a bus service from outside the site to Ullswater and Glenridding.

There is a 'new walk' past the top of the dog walk through the forest to Dockray now which is on good forest roads.

And in Ambleside the new car park next to the church has long spaces for MHs.

Years ago we stayed at Braithwaite Fold in Bowness/Windermere when it was a CMC site, now run by the C&CC. There is access to transport and of course lake steamers.

David

Paul,  Long ago we lived near Penrith so Ullswater was our  local lake. At Patterdale /Glenridding at the head of the lake there is a CL and two independent sites. I will let you choose, The lake steamer at 9.45 am.will take  you across to Howtown and then it’s a pleasant lakeside footpath walk to get back again. No mountain climbing involved, but it’s a 7 mile walk and that might be too far for some.