We have just returned from a lovely family weekend break to the Lake District. We love
visiting the Lakes and have previously stayed in a little Bed and Breakfast, Caravan Park or Hotel. This break was a little different as there were 14 of us in total so we needed to book somewhere big enough for us all. After a lot of searching the internet my brother in law found Simgill Farm. It's described as luxury self catering accommodation with properties that sleep up to 18 people.
We booked Barn Court which is a detached 5 bedroom cottage that can sleep up to 14 people plus room for cots for children under 2. We have never stayed in anything like this before so we weren't sure what to expect however after reading the reviews on TripAdvisor and browsing some photographs we were really looking forward to it.
Check in time is from 3pm however we were stuck in traffic on the journey then popped in to Kendal for some dinner first so we didn't arrive till almost 8pm. We headed to the owners house who greeted us and came across opened the cottage up, and gave us a brief tour.
Downstairs there was a large living area which had three sofas, tv, video and dvd player and lots of cushions and beanbags.
There was a bedroom which had one double bed and two single beds. This bedroom had a small wardrobe and 8 decent sized drawers.
Across the hall from the bedroom was a small bathroom with toilet, sink and shower cubicle.
Just along the hall was the kitchen. It was fully equipped with a huge dining room table. It wasn't big enough for all of us to sit around at the same time due to highchairs however there were extra chairs and breakfast bar stools available.
The kitchen had everything you needed from a self catering cottage. It had a huge double oven, microwave, kettle, toaster and lots of cutlery, glasses, plates etc.
There was also a fridge, dishwasher and washer/dryer.
Outside there was a huge garden area, BBQ and a hot tub which is available to use at an extra cost. I am sad to say that we didn't use the outside area at all we were too busy exploring the Lakes.
Upstairs there were 4 bedrooms. A Master bedroom with ensuite and a single bed.
Two double rooms and the last bedroom had a double bed and a single bed. There was also a bathroom upstairs too.
Simgill had provided us with two travel cots, two highchairs and stair gates were fitted, so really child friendly and saved some space in the cars travelling up.
Simgill Farm is home to over 100 Alpacas and we were lucky enough to book a time slot to go up to the fields and see them.
This was free of charge and I would definitely recommend it. The owners were very friendly and answered any questions we had about the Alpacas and also gave us buckets of food so we could feed them.
Travelling in a group of 14 including 4 small children I was a bit unsure whether it would be big enough and whether we would all have enough space as I know we were all bringing toys etc but it honestly was. It never felt overcrowded and I know the four of us felt like we had lots of space and could head to our bedroom should we need a quick rest.
Big J shared a room with his cousin even though our room had two single beds so it was just the three of us. The extra bed was used as a place to store things so that did come in handy.
Like I said earlier we have never been to this type of accommodation before so had no idea what to bring so we did pack everything we could think of however there are a few things we didn't need.
Whats Included.
Towels - There were plenty of bath towels and hand towels on each bed.
Toilet Rolls - We only used the downstairs bathroom as our bedroom was downstairs and there were two rolls provided. I did top this up with our own toilet rolls as this bathroom probably got used the most by everyone.
Hand Soap - there was a small bar of soap provided and small toiletries.
Tea/Coffee - Again a small selection of tea/coffee is provided (similar to those found in hotel rooms)
Entertainment - There were a selection of videos and dvds in the living area, playing cards and also some family board games such as scrabble.
Wifi - Free and was very good considering we were in the Lake District
Highchairs/Cots - available on request.
A visit to the Alpacas - Definitely worth a visit. The kids loved it.
What To Bring
Food/Drink - It's self catering so unless you want to eat out then I would recommend bringing some food especially breakfast/snacks. There is a Morrisons and Aldi about a 10/15 minute drive away.
Hairdryer - I brought my own anyway but I didn't spot one in the rooms.
Iron - there was a board however couldn't find an iron.
Kitchen Roll - I was lost without this because I use it for everything.
Kitchen Foil - The trays in the oven where already lined but I brought extra and it was used.
Overall we had a great stay at Simgill Farm, I think we all wished it was for longer. It's a great base for visiting the Lakes. Kendal is about a 20 minute drive away, Bowness/Windermere/Ambleside is about 30/40 minutes and Coniston was approx 1 hour away.
Departure time was 10am so it was nice to get up and enjoy breakfast before we left. When it was time to go the owners popped over to say goodbye and also to start cleaning for the next guests who were arriving that afternoon. It does seem very popular so booking in advance is definitely recommended.
Would we visit again? Definitely if we could get a big group together again. Like I said earlier I wished we had booked for longer as there is so much to see and do in the Lakes, an extra few days would have been great.
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Michelle
