Windermere Lake Cruises
England's biggest lake from the deck of a proper boat, with red, yellow and green routes so you can pick a 45-minute hop or a full lake cruise. Combo tickets pair it with the aquarium or the steam railway.
Minty Land at Brockhole
Windermere & Bowness, Cumbria
Brockhole, the old national park visitor centre on the Windermere shore, changed hands in April 2026 when BeWILDerwood, who run the adventure parks in Norfolk and Cheshire, took over. Their first move was Minty Land, their first ever indoor play experience, which opened in the grounds on 25 July 2026.
It is built round Minty the Crocklebog, with tree-top tunnels that climb towards the roof, river rapids and magic mirrors, and it is sold in timed slots at £8 off-peak or £10 in the school holidays, including one adult. Extra adults are £2. Brockhole's parking comes on top, from £5.50 for two hours.
BeWILDerwood's outdoor play is due at Brockhole in spring 2027, so expect the site to keep changing for a while. Zip World's Treetop Trek and the Wild Bounce inflatables are on the same site if the rain stops.
What it costs: Minty Land tickets are £8 off-peak and £10 in the school holidays, each covering one child and one adult. Additional adults £2. Babes in arms free. Brockhole parking is extra: £5.50 up to two hours, £6.50 for three, £9 all day.
Know before you go
- Tickets are timed slots from 10am, last entry 4pm, and if the play area is not full when your slot ends you can stay on. You can bring food and drink from the Whitehouse Cafe through into Minty Land.
- Wild Bounce, four inflatables outside, runs 11am to 4pm daily at £10 for anyone over a metre and £5 for smaller children, and cannot be pre-booked, so treat it as a dry-day bonus.
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Brockhole on Windermere
The national park's visitor centre with treetop nets, archery, mini golf, boat hire and a big adventure playground running down to the lake shore. Free to wander; the activities are pay-as-you-go.
The World of Beatrix Potter
Peter Rabbit's world recreated in walk-through scenes, ending in the garden with Mr McGregor's vegetables. Squarely for the under-8s; it is small, sweet and unashamed of it.
Orrest Head
The classic first family fell: a short climb from Windermere village to a proper summit with the whole lake and the high fells laid out below. A surfaced accessible path now runs all the way up, though it is still a real 120-metre climb, not a stroll.
Holehird Gardens
Ten acres of fellside garden looking down over Windermere, run by the Lakeland Horticultural Society: terraces, a walled garden, glasshouses and children's trails. No fixed entry price and children go free.
Windermere Jetty Museum
Lakeland Arts keeps Windermere's historic boats floating under cover in a wet dock on the Bowness lakeshore, so children see them in water and not propped on stands.
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