In a nutshell
This 17th-century farmhouse in the village of Near Sawrey is where Potter lived, wrote and based many of her best-loved stories. “Hill Top is to be presented to my visitors,” she stated [to the National Trust] in her will, “as if I had just gone out and they had just missed me.” Children are greeted at the door with a bookmarked copy of The Tale of Samuel Whiskers and encouraged to spot the things in its illustrations: grandfather clock, Welsh dresser, Oriental rug … but the whole village is like a game of Potter I-spy, from the dolls’ house in The Tale of Two Bad Mice to the rhubarb patch where Jemima Puddle-Duck hid her eggs.
Fun fact
Potter had a terrible problem with rats (they were the inspiration for Samuel Whiskers) when she first moved to the house. She counted 96 in her first two years. Look for the holes in the doors and floors.
Best thing about it
The adventure of getting there. It’s possible to drive straight to the house but it’s more fun to take the chain ferry across Windermere as a foot passenger (50p each way) and follow the twisty two-mile trail through the woods, past Hug a Tree and other quirky signs, across the fields, up country lanes and alongside a brook. The signposts in Japanese (20% of visitors are from Japan) and the notice on the ferry advising that changeable weather sometimes makes a return trip impossible add interest to it.
What about lunch?
In the village, the Tower Bank Arms (featured in The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck) serves pub lunches from £5-£10, Sawrey House Hotel does sandwiches and meals (£7-£14) and Belle Green B&B has cheese on crumpets (£3) and cakes. There are two food stalls near the ferry jetty at Bowness and Café in the Courtyard (soup, toasties and pies £4-£7) is on the far shore. There’s more pub grub (£5-£13) at the Cuckoo Brow Inn halfway up the trail to the house.
Exit through the gift shop?
You pass it on the way in and out, but it’s small and rather classy, with charming Peter Rabbit ceramics, books, soft toys, notebooks and pencils.
Opening hours
10am-4.30pm mid-February to the end of October. Closed Fridays. A timed-entry ticket system prevents overcrowding but in the summer it’s best to get there early.
Getting there
Ferry from Bowness (15-minute journey every 40 minutes) on foot or with the car (long wait in the summer) and then walk, drive or catch the Mountain Goat minibus (late March-late October). Alternatively, drive (B5286, B5285) from Ambleside. There’s a bus to the ferry jetty from Windermere station, two miles away.
Value for money
Good. If you take the ferry on foot and a picnic (Claife viewing station on the far shore has panoramic views) you’ve got a whole day out. Adult £10.90, child £5.45, family £27.25.
Verdict
8/10.
