Thanks to all those who joined me for my talk on the Lake District at the NEC Motorhome & Caravan Show 2026! It was brilliant to share some of my favourite places, memorable moments and a few hard-earned lessons from exploring the Lakes by motorhome.
Whether you joined us or missed out, here’s a recap of the highlights, from exploring Windermere without the stress of driving to discovering quieter northern lakes and following the mountains towards the coast.
You’ll also be able to re-watch the video when it's posted to my YouTube Channel.
In the meantime, read on for places worth stopping for, practical tips for travelling in a larger vehicle and the unexpected moments that made this trip so memorable. Whether it’s your first visit or you think you already know the Lakes, there’s plenty to discover beyond the busiest shores.
There’s another side to the Lake District
Picture the Lake District and you probably think of Windermere, Bowness and Ambleside. Beautiful places, absolutely. But add a sunny Saturday in August and a seven-metre motorhome, and a relaxing holiday can start to feel like a questionable life decision.
While researching my Lake District Road Trip guidebook, I discovered that the answer isn’t to avoid the Lakes. It’s to look beyond the obvious stops and rethink how you explore the popular ones.
There are quieter corners, spectacular walks and stretches of coastline that feel a world away from the busiest waterfronts. And if you give yourself time to connect them, the trip becomes much more than a list of places to tick off.
See the highlights minus driving stress
The South Lakes are a wonderful place to begin. Windermere, Ambleside and Coniston all deserve time, but you don’t need to spend your visit moving between busy car parks.
Instead, think of your campsite or suitable parking spot as a base. Around Windermere, the boat network lets you swap traffic for lake views, travelling between places such as Lakeside, Bowness and Ambleside without taking the motorhome everywhere.
It changes the pace of the day, so rather than worrying about where you’ll park next, you can enjoy the journey itself. It also gives you a new perspective on your surroundings.
Windermere
Leave the road behind for a while
Some of my favourite experiences in the Lakes have started with parking up and heading out on foot.
Near Coniston, the walk past Tom Gill Waterfall towards Tarn Hows takes you through woodland before opening onto a landscape of water, little islands and places to pause. Rydal Cave offers something different again, with its dramatic rocky entrance and stepping stones leading into the water.
Further north, Catbells is one of my favourite walks for the views it delivers. There are steep sections, and it deserves proper preparation, but looking out over Derwentwater (aka 'The Queen of the Lakes') and the surrounding fells makes the effort worthwhile.
A Lake District road trip doesn’t have to become a mountain-climbing expedition. Choose walks that suit your ability and give yourself time to enjoy them, rather than treating the summit as the only thing that matters.
Catbells
Head north and let the pace slow down
As I travelled north, I found myself settling into the trip rather than simply moving through it.
Ullswater was a particular highlight. At Waterside House Campsite, I watched the evening light settle over water so still it looked like glass. There was no big activity or elaborate plan, just a beautiful place and the chance to appreciate it.
A trip on the Ullswater Steamers, a visit to Aira Force waterfall, or time around Keswick and Derwentwater gives this part of the journey its own rhythm. There’s plenty to explore, but you don’t need to fit it all into one day. Sometimes the best decision is to stay another night.
Ullswater
Follow the mountains towards the sea
One of the biggest surprises of my trip was the coast. Head west and the scenery changes. Beaches, dunes and coastal towns add a completely different chapter to a journey you might have expected to be all lakes and mountains.
Whitehaven brought a change of pace and a visit to The Rum Story, a really fascinating exhibit that details the town's rum-making and colonial trade history. Drigg Sands offered something quieter altogether: open space, sand dunes and the fells in the background.
It was there that I photographed my dog Archie (pictured below) sitting on top of a dune in the sunshine. He had recovered from an operation and was back to enjoying himself, running around without a care in the world.
A few months later, we lost him after his cancer returned. That photograph became far more important than I could ever have known when I took it. A friend later turned it into a painting, giving me another reminder of that day.
At the time, it was simply a lovely moment on a beach. Looking back, it’s one of the memories I treasure most.
Archie on the dunes at Drigg Sands
A little planning makes all the difference
Of course, not every memorable moment happens for the right reasons. I’ve made enough mistakes to know that a relaxed road trip still needs some preparation.
Driving Hardknott Pass, a steep, single-track mountain road, taught me not to assume a road is suitable simply because it’s possible to follow it on a map. In a larger vehicle, steep gradients, tight bends and narrow sections can turn a scenic drive into an experience you’d rather not repeat.
Getting caught in poor visibility on Scafell Pike was another lesson. We set off expecting a straightforward day and ended up descending on the wrong side of the mountain, cold, soaked and facing a very expensive taxi journey back.
The point isn’t to put anyone off. It’s to make the avoidable problems exactly that: avoidable. Good planning gives you more freedom, not less.
My key takeaways from my Road Trip Lake District were:
- Plan roads around your vehicle’s size rather than blindly following your satnav.
- Book campsites ahead when travelling during busy periods.
- Use the boat networks so you don’t have to drive everywhere.
- Download maps before heading into areas with unreliable reception.
- Prepare properly for walks, including navigation and changing weather.
- Leave the places you visit as you found them.
- Good planning gives you more freedom to enjoy the trip, not less.
Scafell Pike
What stays with me after the trip isn't a perfect itinerary. It’s a still evening beside Ullswater, an unexpected rainbow while waiting for breakdown assistance, and Archie sitting in the sunshine above the beach.
That’s what a road trip makes possible: the chance to connect the familiar places with the unexpected ones and make memories somewhere in between.
So my advice is to go beyond the busiest shores. Head north, explore west and follow the mountains towards the sea. You might arrive thinking you already know the Lake District, and leave with an entirely different picture.