Holiday Parks Near Ullswater

Picture a slim lake bending between the hills, with a boat built in 1877 chugging towards Glenridding and Helvellyn rising behind it. That’s the view the Ullswater holiday parks are built around. You won’t find caravans lined up at the water’s edge, though. The self catering parks sit on hillsides above Pooley Bridge, in the Patterdale valley and in the woods and farmland towards Penrith and Greystoke, all inside or right beside the Lake District National Park.

So the real choice is which end of the lake you want to wake up at. Below we compare the six parks on our listings, closest first.

Which Ullswater holiday parks are closest to the water?

Drive times are from the middle of the lake, so treat them as a rough guide. Tap a heading to sort.

All six welcome pets.

Caravan parks Ullswater guests love, compared

Hillcroft Park

8 mins by car | sleeps up to 14 | hot tubs | rated 4.8

The only one you can walk from. Hillcroft sits on a rolling hillside above the lakeside village of Pooley Bridge, about five minutes away on foot, and the Heath family runs it all year. Accommodation runs from holiday homes to luxury lodges with a hot tub, plus self-catering cottages.

• Facilities include a children’s play area, upgraded for 2026, and a licensed shop
• Laundry, wi-fi and a doggy shower for muddy paws
• Bike hire, a games room and a reception

Just the two of you? The glamping pods at Hillcroft have a 5ft bed, a kitchenette and an enclosed terrace, and they’re rated 5.0.

Flusco Wood

10 mins by car | sleeps up to 4 | hot tubs | rated 4.8

• Part of the Bouja Luxury Boutique Breaks Collection
• A private outdoor tub on the decking
• An enclosed dog walking area

Woodland lodges four and a half miles from the water, near Greystoke and handy for the A66. Small and smart, it suits a couple or a family of four.

Lowside Farm Glamping

12 mins by car | sleeps up to 12 | rated 4.6

Pods on a farm at Troutbeck, off the A66, each with open plan living, a kitchen and seating outside. Walks and cycle routes start from your door, and the sunsets over the hills are the reason to come.

Hartsop Fold

14 mins by car | sleeps up to 4 | hot tubs | rated 4.7

This is the hillwalkers’ pick. Scandinavian-style lodges from the Wanderwood collection sit between Brotherswater and the head of the lake, two miles beyond Patterdale, with red deer and red squirrels nearby, a big verandah for the night sky and heated storage for wet coats. Only some lodges have a tub, so check when booking.

Lowther Park

21 mins by car | sleeps up to 6 | rated 4.5

Fifty acres of woodland in the grounds of the historic Lowther Estate, beside the river at Eamont Bridge. It has facilities for the whole family: a games room for wet days and outdoor play areas for the children. Lowther Castle and its Lost Castle adventure playground are close by.

Thanet Well Lodge Retreat

24 mins by car | sleeps up to 6 | hot tubs | rated 4.5

Secluded, modern lodges at the foot of Carrock and Bowscale Fells on the edge of Greystoke Forest, with Blencathra in view. Expect beams, a feature fireplace, a free-standing bath and a peaceful location, plus a shop on site.

Bringing a tent or a touring caravan?

We list holiday homes, but plenty of people search for camping too. Here’s the honest picture:

• Hillcroft also has traditional camping and touring pitches.
• Ullswater Holiday Park at Watermillock isn’t on our site. It’s a family campsite with tent and touring pitches, static caravans, self-catering cottages, a bar, a shop and Fairfield Marina a mile away. It doesn’t take groups.
• Park Foot, also not listed, has three camping fields for tents and tourers on the banks of the lake a short walk from the village, plus a restaurant and bar.

Check each park’s own facilities and electric hook-ups before you go.

Which park suits your break?

• Walk to the pubs: Hillcroft.
• Helvellyn days: Hartsop Fold.
• Couples: the Hillcroft pods, Flusco Wood or Thanet Well.
• Families: Lowther or Hillcroft.
• A tub under the stars: Flusco Wood, Thanet Well, Hillcroft or Hartsop Fold. See every park with one.
• Bigger groups: Hillcroft or Lowside Farm.
• Dogs: any of them, or browse dog friendly parks nationwide.

A trip on the Ullswater ‘Steamers’

Half the fun of a stay here is getting out on the water. The fleet includes Lady of the Lake, built in 1877 and believed to be the oldest working passenger boat in the UK, and Raven from 1889.

• Glenridding to Pooley Bridge: the full length in about an hour. Howtown is 35 minutes from Glenridding.
• Pooley Bridge pier reopened on 2 March 2026 after new decking and strengthening.
• Aira Force pier isn’t in use. The operator’s timetable and fares page says those sailings return in 2027.
• Dogs pay £1.50, stay on a short lead and keep off the seats.

Boats sail every day except Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Aira Force, the new bridge and Glenridding

Aira Beck drops around 20 metres into a rocky pool at Aira Force, on National Trust land since 1906. There’s pay and display parking with a café, and it fills early in summer, so go first thing or catch the 508 bus. The path on to Glencoyne passes the spot where the Wordsworths saw their daffodils in April 1802!

Pooley Bridge

Storm Desmond swept away the old stone bridge over the River Eamont in December 2015. Its replacement, the UK’s first stainless steel road bridge, opened on 23 October 2020 (Visit Eden has the story). Cross it for cafés, shops and the pier.

Glenridding and Patterdale

Glenridding grew up around the Greenside lead mine, closed in 1962, and is now the base for Helvellyn, with electric car charging at the pier.

Walking: the Ullswater Way and Helvellyn

The Ullswater Way

This 20 mile loop round the lake opened in 2016 and links all four piers, so walk one stretch and sail back. Howtown to Glenridding is the favourite, rocky and up and down. The national park’s guide flags 200m beside the A592 at Stybarrow Crag.

Helvellyn by Striding Edge

At 950m, Helvellyn is England’s third highest mountain, and Striding Edge is a narrow, exposed scramble. Take it seriously:

• Allow five to six hours for about 7.5 miles from Glenridding.
• Skip it in strong wind, and come down by Swirral Edge.
• Snow and ice mean an ice axe, crampons and the skills to use them.
• From December, read the daily Weatherline report from the Fell Top Assessors.

Getting there from the M6

• By car: leave the M6 at junction 40, take the A66 west, then the A592.
• By train: Penrith is on the West Coast Main Line.
• By bus: the 508 runs from the station to the lake and Patterdale, less often in winter. The Ullswater Hopper ran at weekends and daily in July to September in 2026, and all the buses take dogs (Visit Eden).

When’s the best time to visit?

May and September win. Patterdale Dog Day, with its sheepdog trials, fell on 29 August in 2026.

What to pack for your lakeside break

Sharing a lodge or holiday home makes a four night short break much cheaper.

Ullswater holiday park FAQs

From the steel bridge to Patterdale, Ullswater holiday parks put the boats, the waterfalls and Helvellyn on your doorstep for a week or a weekend. Browse Lake District holiday parks, the full Cumbria list, parks near Keswick or North West England, then book your break.