If you’re searching for unique places to stay in the Lake District, we’ve created something at Basecamp North Lakes that feels genuinely different.
Seven cabins beside our private lake. Outdoor baths overlooking the water. Wood-burning stoves. Dark skies. Wildlife. Mountains on the horizon.
A multi-award-winning Cumbrian farm shop and café a few steps away.
And you’ll be staying at the home of the world-famous Alpacaly Ever After, surrounded by rescued alpacas and llamas.
Welcome to Basecamp Lakeside Cabins.
There are plenty of places to stay in the Lake District.
But every so often, you find somewhere that feels completely different.
A place where you can wake beside the water, make coffee while looking across open Cumbrian countryside, spend the day exploring the Northern Lakes, then come back to your own cabin and watch the sun disappears behind the fells.
That is what we wanted to create at Basecamp North Lakes.
Our new Basecamp Lakeside Cabins sit beside our private lake on our working farm and wetland reserve, between Penrith and Keswick in the Lake District.
Seven individual cabins. Water outside your window. Mountains around you. Alpacas and llamas for neighbours. And our farm shop and Mess Hall just a short walk away.
If you are searching for unique places to stay in the Lake District, this is Basecamp.
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A Different Kind of Lake District Stay
We didn’t want to build another conventional holiday park.
The idea behind the cabins was simple. Give people a comfortable place to stay, but allow the landscape to remain the main attraction.
Each cabin sits carefully within the lakeside setting, with no space between them and views across the water and surrounding countryside.
The cabins are 8.5 metres by 4 metres, giving you considerably more than a place to sleep.
Inside, you’ll find a comfortable living space with a wood-burning stove, a fully equipped mini kitchen, an en-suite bathroom with a walk-in shower, a double bedroom and a double sofa bed.
Outside is where things become a little different.
Each cabin has its own freestanding outdoor bath positioned towards the lake.
Fill the bath, sit outside and watch the landscape change around you.
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Wake Up Beside the Water. Open the curtains and the lake is there.
The wetland around the cabins is home to wildlife throughout the year, while the surrounding fields and fells change constantly with the Cumbrian weather.
Some mornings will be bright and still.
Others will be misty, wet and unmistakably Lake District.
We think both have their place.
Make breakfast in your cabin, wander over to Basecamp for coffee, or simply sit outside for a while and decide what you want to do with the day.
There doesn’t have to be a timetable.
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Everything You Need Inside Your Cabin
The cabins have been designed to give you independence without filling a small space with things you don’t need.
Each Basecamp Lakeside Cabin includes:
- Double bedroom
- Double sofa bed
- Comfortable living area
- Wood-burning stove
- Fully equipped mini kitchen
- Hob and oven
- Sink
- En-suite bathroom
- Walk-in shower
- Outdoor freestanding bath overlooking the lake
- Unlimited Wi-Fi
- Eco-friendly soaps and toiletries from local makers
The cabins work particularly well for couples looking for a Lake District escape, while the additional sofa bed gives smaller families more flexibility.
You can cook for yourself, eat at Basecamp, head into Keswick or Penrith, or mix all three during your stay.
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Your Farm Shop Is Just a Walk Away
This is one of the things that makes staying at Basecamp different.
You’re not isolated from everything you need.
Our award-winning Basecamp North Lakes farm shop is on site.
We work with farms, growers and independent producers from across Cumbria, alongside food produced by our own butchery, kitchen, deli and bakery teams.
So rather than arriving with a car full of supermarket shopping, you can pick up what you need here.
Local meat for dinner.
Fresh bread.
Cheese.
Cakes.
Breakfast ingredients.
Something from the deli.
A bottle for the evening.
And plenty of good Cumbrian food to take home when your stay is over.
STAY BY THE LAKE. EAT LOCAL. EXPLORE CUMBRIA.
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Breakfast, Lunch and Coffee at The Mess Hall
If cooking isn’t part of your holiday plans, that’s fine too.
Our Mess Hall café is also on site.
You can wander across from your cabin for breakfast or coffee, come back for lunch after a morning exploring, or pick up something from the farm shop to take back to your cabin.
It means you get the freedom of self-catering without having to self-cater every meal.
And because the cabins are part of Basecamp rather than a separate accommodation site, everything is within easy reach.
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Meet the Alpacas and Llamas
You may also notice some unusual neighbours.
Basecamp is home to Alpacaly Ever After, our not-for-profit alpaca and llama rescue organisation.
Over the years, Alpacaly Ever After has become one of the Lake District’s best-known animal experiences, giving visitors the chance to get genuinely close to rescued alpacas and llamas.
Depending on availability, you can book experiences including alpaca walks, llama treks and meet-and-greets.
Activities need to be booked separately, so we recommend arranging them in advance rather than waiting until you arrive.
It makes for a fairly unusual morning.
Wake beside the lake. Have breakfast. Then go for a walk with an alpaca.
Add a Wood-Fired Sauna to Your Stay
There is another Basecamp experience worth making time for that will be coming late 2026.
Our wood-fired sauna will sit within the wider lakeside setting.
Cabin stays will include a sauna session, giving you the chance to warm up properly after a day on the fells or simply build an hour of doing very little into your stay.
And frankly, Cumbria provides plenty of weather that makes a hot sauna feel like an excellent idea.
Then it’s back to the cabin, light the stove and settle in for the evening.
One Basecamp. The Northern Lakes on Your Doorstep.
One of Basecamp’s biggest advantages is its location.
We’re alongside the A66 between Penrith and Keswick, giving you easy access to a huge part of the Lake District without needing to stay in the middle of a busy town.
Keswick is within easy reach, with Derwentwater, Borrowdale and the surrounding fells beyond it.
Head towards Ullswater and you have one of England’s most beautiful lakes, along with walking routes ranging from gentle lakeside outings to serious days in the mountains.
Closer to Basecamp you’ll find Blencathra, while the quieter landscapes of the Northern Lakes offer plenty of places to explore away from the busiest visitor spots.
You can spend the day out and come back to somewhere that feels removed from all of it.
A Base for Walking in the Lake District
If walking is the reason you’re coming to Cumbria, you’re in the right part of the county.
From Basecamp you can reach some exceptional walking country.
Blencathra dominates the landscape around us, while Ullswater, Keswick, Borrowdale and the Northern Fells open up hundreds of possibilities.
You don’t need to spend every day tackling summits either.
There are woodland walks, lakeside routes, waterfalls, forests, valleys and quieter paths throughout the area.
Walk as much or as little as you like.
Your outdoor bath isn’t going anywhere.
Stay Somewhere Connected to the Landscape
The land surrounding the cabins matters to us.
Basecamp isn’t a landscaped resort built to look rural.
It’s part of a working Cumbrian site that includes farmland, wetland habitat, our lake, community growing areas and the home of rescued alpacas and llamas.
We share the site with a considerable amount of wildlife too.
The wetland and lake attract birds, bats and other species throughout the year, and we’re continuing to improve the habitat as Basecamp develops.
That means the landscape around your cabin isn’t simply the view.
It’s part of what we’re trying to protect and improve.
Evenings at Basecamp
The best part of the day might come when you stop doing things.
Head back to the cabin.
Put the fire on.
Cook something you’ve picked up from the farm shop.
Pour a drink.
Run the outdoor bath.
Then sit outside and watch the light disappear across the water.
As darkness arrives, you’re away from the bright lights of the bigger towns and surrounded by open countryside.
You don’t need entertainment organised for you.
Sometimes a quiet evening beside a Cumbrian lake is enough.
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Make Basecamp Part of a Bigger Lake District Adventure
You don’t have to choose between a peaceful rural stay and exploring the Lake District.
Basecamp gives you both.
Spend one day around Keswick.
Another around Ullswater.
Walk in the Northern Fells.
Visit local attractions.
Book an alpaca experience.
Have a sauna.
Spend an afternoon doing absolutely nothing.
Then come back to the same cabin beside the water each evening.
That’s exactly what we designed them for.
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Unique Places to Stay in the Lake District
If you’re looking for unique accommodation in the Lake District, there are plenty of unusual options.
What makes Basecamp different is the combination.
A private lakeside setting.
Only seven cabins.
An outdoor bath.
A wood-burning stove.
A wood-fired sauna.
An award-winning farm shop and cafe.
Rescued alpacas and llamas.
A working Cumbrian farm and wetland reserve.
And the Northern Lakes waiting outside the gate.
You don’t need to drive somewhere else to start your holiday.
You’re already here.
BASECAMP IS WHERE ADVENTURES BEGIN.
Book Your Basecamp Lakeside Cabin
The Basecamp Lakeside Cabins are now open for stays.
Whether you’re planning a romantic Lake District break, a few days walking in the Northern Fells, a family adventure or simply want somewhere different to switch off for a while, we’d love you to experience Basecamp for yourself.
Come for the cabin.
Explore the Lakes.
Eat some brilliant Cumbrian food.
Have a sauna.
Then finish the day back beside the water.
Your Basecamp is waiting.
BOOK YOUR LAKESIDE STAY
WWW.BASECAMPNORTHLAKES.CO.UK