A Georgian gem in Wordsworth country

Set in two acres of landscaped gardens and with sweeping views over the Duddon Estuary, Broadgate House is a grand family mansion in the heart of the Lake District. The common areas are positively baronial, with a Baroque drawing room with a black marble fireplace, and a dining room seating 14 with ease. If that’s too formal there’s also a charming breakfast room and a cosy guest sitting room with a wood-burning stove. It can be grand or intimate to suit your taste.

There are any number of bedrooms here, decorated with period wall-coverings and furniture, vividly recalling its 1814 glory days. Only two or three are let out at any one time, meaning guests effectively get a floor of their own and a high degree of privacy. There are two massive doubles and a single, beautifully decked out with crisp linens and comfortable mattresses. As befitting such a traditional mansion the bathrooms are not en-suite but are private, palatial spaces with free-standing baths looking out over glorious views. Televisions in rooms would be completely out of place here – Broadgate House has bookshelves – but these days, of course, there is wifi: the router is on the ground floor but there’s a strong signal throughout.

Through the day guests are free to roam around their own floor as well as downstairs, where there are separate rooms for breakfast, dining and quite a few sitting rooms. But when the weather is kind it’s the south-west facing terrace in front of the house that’s best. The grounds at Broadgate House are an integral part of this magnificent lodge’s appeal, with a glorious selection of rhododendron bushes and countless flower beds.  The two acres are divided into a series of ‘garden rooms‘, including an expansive walled garden, a croquet lawn and several terraces, all with sweeping views of the Lakeland landscape and the sea below.

Dogs aren’t allowed in Broadgate House but if they’re happy to sleep in the car the parking area is secluded, sheltered and secure.

Broadgate House suggests

Come in summer, when the gardens are at their best. Or in winter, when the crowds have gone and the landscape broods the change of season. There’ll always be a log fire to keep winter at bay.