Dell Lodge, High Borrans Farm

Dell Lodge sits on High Borrans Farm in the hills above Windermere, up a country lane and well clear of the town traffic. It is a self-contained lodge on a small farm site, so you get your own door and your own space rather than a corridor and a reception desk, and the fells begin where the parking ends.

The pet policy here is unusually thorough, and it is worth reading before you book rather than after. The lodge takes two guests with up to two medium-sized dogs, and dogs are the only pets accepted. Breeds covered by the Dangerous Dogs Act are refused outright, and large breeds the owners judge unsuitable for the lodge are declined too, which is why the booking form asks what breed you are bringing. If your dog sits near the top of the size range, settle that in advance rather than on arrival.

The house rules are the practical kind. Dogs stay off the furniture and the bedding, must not be left alone in the lodge, and should be clean and dry before they come inside. Dog towels live in the shared outside laundry room, which is a genuinely useful piece of kit in the Lakes: wet-dog days are part of the deal here, and washing and drying as you go takes the sting out of them. Leads are required across the site, because this is a working hill farm with livestock and wildlife around rather than a landscaped holiday park. No standard pet fee is published, but any extra cleaning a dog leaves behind is charged to you.

The walking is the reason to come. A reservoir path is a short stroll away and the lanes around High Borrans link into the fell routes, while Windermere and Ambleside are a few minutes down the hill when you want a pub with a water bowl by the door. Dog owners who have stayed describe the lodge as spotlessly clean and thoughtfully equipped, with the on-site laundry earning a particular mention.

Best suited to a couple with one or two mid-sized dogs, used to walking on a lead around livestock, who want a quiet and private farm base for the southern Lakes.