ADULTS AND KIDS FAMILY FUN LAKESIDE tr avel report LAKE DISTRICT

(organic hen’s egg, truffle, garden pea espuma is one choice example) for £52 and then £77 with wine.

There’s a traditional feel but there’s also leaning toward the continental and Mediterranean.

The Lancashire Cheese Soufflé with tomato jam is punchy but light.

And dishes don’t come any more local than pressed Herdwick lamb shoulder.

Likewise, there’s an excellent selection of fish; the Lakes are, of course, not far from the Irish Sea.

Like steak? You’ll be spoilt for choice with Galician Blond slabs from the famed mature diary cows, Belted Galloway from Scotland and Wagyu from Japan.

If you can get beyond Lakeland Gold, made by the wonderful Hawkshead Brewery, and on offer in the bar and restaurant, then there’s also a rather well-stocked wine cellar with bottles ranging from £25 to £50.

To work up an appetite you may want to make use of the 17-metre swimming pool and associated spa with its plethora of complementary treatments and massages.

The pool is one of the best I’ve visited in the Lakes and there is no time- limit for the fun.

As if being lakeside isn’t enough, the hotel is seconds from the aforementioned Lakeside train station, the marvellous Lakes Aquarium and the jetty for the Windermere ferries.

Climbing aboard the Windermere Lake Cruises service will have you in Bowness in 40 minutes and what a 40 minutes! Even in rain and mist the lake is a wonderful sight.

A stroll through town gets you to the Beatrix Potter museum and theatre.

I’ve been to the Lakes scores of times over the years but have never set foot in the Beatrix Potter museum. And I’ll admit the delights of this miniature world of Beatrix Potter characters is delightful enough to put a smile on the face of even the grumpiest middle-aged misanthrope.

The sly old fox Mr Tod and the waddling squatter Tommy Brock, the badger, appear in a scene straight out of the Tale of Mr Tod.

Mrs Tiggywinkle, the hedgehog can be witnessed hard at work in her kitchen while the sow, Aunt Pettitoes, is spotted desperately trying to feed her piglets.

My favourite experience, however, was peering into the nooks and crannies to find some of the mice enjoying a natter or a tea party.

Lunch in Bowness was spent jostling with Chinese tourists at local chippy Vinegard Jones, but it was worth it; classic fish and chips with the all-important mushy peas.

An attraction that only requires a few seconds’ walk to reach from the Lakeside is the Lakes Aquarium.

I have to be honest; I didn’t expect much from it.

But in the end, I was more than pleasantly surprised.

Apart from displays and tanks that represent the varied flora fauna of Lakeland waterways, there are some more exotic animals in the rainforest and African environments.

A glass tunnel submerges you beneath the lake itself to reveal an underwater world teaming with life.

Of course, from the hotel’s position lakeland walks abound, even if you only want to make the short journey to the viewing point at Claife Heights and enjoy a cuppa in the nearby cafe.

For the summer ahead with the children in tow, the Lakeside is a regal treat.