How much is afternoon tea in the Lake District?

Among the hotels here, the standard afternoon tea starts at £30 per person at Holbeck Ghyll, £35 at Gilpin Lake House and Storrs Hall, £38 for the pan-Asian tea at Lodore Falls' Mizu restaurant, and £39 at Armathwaite Hall and Linthwaite House. Champagne versions run from £42 at Holbeck Ghyll and £50 at Armathwaite Hall to £51 at Gilpin and £61 at Linthwaite House (Storrs Hall adds £15 for a glass). These are the prices published on each hotel's own website in October 2026, and they change, so check before you book.

Do I need to book afternoon tea in the Lake District in advance?

Yes, booking ahead is the safe approach. Storrs Hall asks for 24 hours' notice because everything is made fresh, Holbeck Ghyll serves tea on Tuesdays and Wednesdays only by pre-booking, and Lodore Falls' Mizu tea needs a minimum of two guests. Gilpin, Armathwaite Hall and Linthwaite House don't state a minimum notice online, but all take bookings through their websites or by phone, and Gilpin asks for at least 24 hours' notice of any dietary requirements.

Where can you have an unusual afternoon tea in the Lake District?

Lodore Falls Hotel & Spa on Derwentwater serves a pan-Asian afternoon tea in its Mizu restaurant: chef's sushi, prawn spring rolls, crab cakes and pork belly sticks, then a matcha and yuzu tart and mango and spiced vanilla scones, for £38 per person with a minimum of two guests, served 12 to 5pm. For a group of ten or more, the hotel also sells an afternoon tea package in its private Falls Cabana overlooking Lodore Falls, at £75 per head for three hours of exclusive use (the hotel's April 2026 price sheet).

Which Lake District afternoon teas cater for vegan, gluten-free or dairy-free diets?

Armathwaite Hall offers vegan and coeliac menus with prior notice, and Lodore Falls publishes a vegetarian version of its traditional tea. Gilpin Lake House and Holbeck Ghyll ask you to give allergy or dietary details when you book, Gilpin by at least 24 hours ahead. Storrs Hall says it cannot offer a full dairy-free, gluten-free or vegan tea, and Linthwaite House doesn't publish its dietary policy for afternoon tea, so ask before booking.

Afternoon Tea · Lake District

Luxury afternoon tea in the Lake District with a view

Six Lake District afternoon teas worth booking ahead for, from £30 a head: lake-view lounges and terraces on Windermere, Bassenthwaite and Derwentwater, a Lake House over Knipe Tarn, and one with a twist, a pan-Asian tea of sushi and matcha and yuzu tart at Lodore Falls.

At a glance

Venue	Price	Booking notice	Dietary options
Gilpin Hotel & Lake House	From £35 pp (£51 with champagne)	Not stated; book online, non-residents welcome	Allergies and dietary needs only with notice: tell them when booking or 24 hours ahead
Armathwaite Hall Hotel & Spa	From £39 pp (£45 prosecco, £50 champagne, £51 Celebration with a cocktail)	Not stated; book online, phone for last-minute bookings	Vegan and coeliac menus with prior notice (period not stated)
Linthwaite House	From £39 pp (£48 prosecco, £61 champagne); its voucher shop lists £42, £51 and £65	Not published	Not published by the hotel
Holbeck Ghyll Country House Hotel	From £30 pp (£42 with champagne)	Not stated; Tuesday and Wednesday by pre-booking only	Give details when booking; specific diets not listed
Storrs Hall	From £35 pp (glass of prosecco £9.50 or champagne £15 extra)	24 hours' notice	Allergies catered for on request; no full dairy-free, gluten-free or vegan tea
Lodore Falls Hotel & Spa	Mizu pan-Asian tea £38 pp, minimum two (prosecco £7.75 a glass); traditional tea price not published	Not published	Vegetarian traditional tea menu; ask staff about allergies before ordering

Prices and availability change — check with the venue before booking.

Gilpin Hotel & Lake House

££££

Lake District

Good gift experience

A family-run, five-red-star hotel near Windermere with a Michelin-starred restaurant and private Spa Suites with their own sauna and jacuzzi.

For this guide: Gilpin's own entry above covers the hotel and spa — its afternoon tea is served separately at Gilpin Lake House overlooking Knipe Tarn, daily 1–3:30pm, from £35pp (£51 with champagne).

The consensus

Gilpin Hotel & Lake House is a family-run, AA Five Red Star, Relais & Châteaux property near Windermere, holding Two MICHELIN Keys and home to the Michelin-starred SOURCE restaurant alongside the more casual Gilpin Spice. Its private Spa Suites and Spa Lodges each come with their own sauna, jacuzzi and steam room, and the Jetty Spa Experience package pairs a treatment with private pool use; classic bedrooms start from around £295 a night in summer, with Spa Suites from around £890. TripAdvisor rates it 4.7 out of 5 across close to 2,500 reviews, and the independent Good Hotel Guide covers it favourably too — the overwhelming majority of feedback is glowing on welcome, staff and setting. It isn't flawless, though: a small number of more recent reviews describe an unwelcoming check-in experience, and a few guests have raised maintenance niggles or questioned value for money against the price, worth weighing against the otherwise strong consensus.

Sourced from TripAdvisor, Good Hotel Guide — how we rate venues

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Last verified 20 August 2026

Armathwaite Hall Hotel & Spa

£££

Lake District

Good gift experience

A 400-acre lakeside estate near Keswick, dog-friendly, with a 16-metre infinity pool overlooking Bassenthwaite Lake and the fells.

For this guide: Armathwaite Hall's own entry above covers its spa — its separate afternoon tea runs daily 12:30–5pm on the shore of Bassenthwaite Lake, from £39pp (£45 with prosecco, £50 with champagne) up to £51pp for the Celebration tea, which comes with a cocktail.

The consensus

Armathwaite Hall sits on a 400-acre estate on the shore of Bassenthwaite Lake near Keswick, dog-friendly throughout and built around a spa whose 16-metre infinity pool looks straight out over the lake to the fells beyond. Alongside the infinity pool, the spa runs to a hydrotherapy pool, sauna, aroma room, steam room and outdoor hot tub, and rooms start from around £211 a night. Both TripAdvisor and the independent Hotel Guru review are consistently positive, and the spa and its infinity-pool view are the single most repeated highlight across reviews — nothing resembling a significant, recurring complaint turned up in the review sampling here, which is unusual enough among spa hotels on this coast to be worth noting plainly rather than dressing up further. It's also one of the better-established venues on the voucher platforms, with packages listed directly through both Buyagift and Red Letter Days.

Sourced from TripAdvisor, The Hotel Guru

Check price at Armathwaite Hall Check price at Buyagift Check price at Red Letter Days

Last verified 20 August 2026

Linthwaite House

££££

Lake District

Good gift experience

An Edwardian hilltop country house above Windermere serving a modern afternoon tea in its Bar & Conservatory.

The consensus

Linthwaite House is an Edwardian country house on a hilltop above Windermere, with 14 acres of grounds, its own tarn and views towards the Coniston Fells. Afternoon tea is served in the Bar & Conservatory, separate from the Henrock restaurant overseen by Simon Rogan, with a patisserie menu that leans modern rather than strictly traditional. The hotel's tea page lists £39 per person, £48 with prosecco and £61 with champagne, but its voucher shop lists £42, £51 and £65, so confirm the figure when booking. TripAdvisor rates the hotel 4.6 out of 5 across nearly 1,950 reviews, with recent diners praising the tea and one reporting that dietary needs were observed carefully; value is its weakest sub-score at 4.3. The hotel doesn't publish tea hours or booking notice online.

Sourced from TripAdvisor, The Hotel Guru

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Last verified 12 October 2026

Holbeck Ghyll Country House Hotel

£££

Lake District

Good gift experience

A Victorian hunting lodge above Windermere serving afternoon tea in lake-view lounges from £30 a head, or £42 with champagne.

The consensus

Holbeck Ghyll is a former hunting lodge turned country house hotel, set in 18 acres above Windermere with lake views from the restaurant and lounges where afternoon tea is served. The tea starts at £30 per person, or £42 with champagne, with a plain cream tea at £15. It runs Thursday to Monday from noon to 4pm, with Tuesday and Wednesday by pre-booking only. TripAdvisor rates the hotel 4.3 out of 5 across roughly 1,870 reviews, with location its standout score (4.9) and recent tea visitors praising the window views over the lake and the welcome. It isn't unanimous: reviews and TripAdvisor's own summary point to dated rooms, inconsistent service and mixed feelings on value, so this is a setting-led treat rather than a flawless one.

Sourced from TripAdvisor, The Hotel Guru

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Last verified 12 October 2026

Storrs Hall

£££

Lake District

Good gift experience

A Georgian mansion on the shore of Windermere serving a contemporary afternoon tea with lake views from £35 a head.

The consensus

Storrs Hall is a Georgian mansion on the shore of Windermere, listed as an AA four-star hotel on its own site, with 17 acres of lakeside grounds. Afternoon tea is served from 12:30 to 4:30pm for £35 per person, with a glass of prosecco at £9.50 or champagne at £15 on top, in a bright, contemporary style set by the pastry chef. The hotel asks for 24 hours' notice because everything is made fresh, and says it cannot offer a full dairy-free, gluten-free or vegan tea, which is worth knowing before booking. TripAdvisor rates the hotel 4.6 out of 5 across roughly 1,580 reviews and ranks it third of 14 in Bowness-on-Windermere; recent tea reviews praise the terrace seating and food, while price is the recurring grumble. The Good Hotel Guide praises the dining and lake views without naming drawbacks.

Sourced from TripAdvisor, Good Hotel Guide

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Last verified 12 October 2026

Lodore Falls Hotel & Spa

£££

Lake District

A lakeside spa hotel on Derwentwater whose Mizu restaurant serves a pan-Asian afternoon tea of sushi, crab cakes and matcha and yuzu tart.

The consensus

Lodore Falls is a four-star lakeside spa hotel on Derwentwater in Borrowdale, and it earns its place here for Mizu, its pan-Asian restaurant, which serves an afternoon tea of chef's sushi, crab cakes, pork belly sticks and a matcha and yuzu tart alongside mango and spiced vanilla scones. It costs £38 per person for a minimum of two, with prosecco at £7.75 a glass, served 12 to 5pm. A traditional tea is also served in the Falls Brasserie until 4pm, but its price isn't published online. TripAdvisor rates the hotel 4.2 out of 5 across roughly 4,850 reviews and gives it a 2026 Travellers' Choice badge; value is the weakest sub-score at 3.9, and reviews mention pricey extras and uneven rooms. The Hotel Guru describes the lake and fell views as enviable.

Sourced from TripAdvisor, The Hotel Guru

Check price at Lodore Falls Hotel & Spa

Last verified 12 October 2026

Questions people ask

How much is afternoon tea in the Lake District?: Among the hotels here, the standard afternoon tea starts at £30 per person at Holbeck Ghyll, £35 at Gilpin Lake House and Storrs Hall, £38 for the pan-Asian tea at Lodore Falls' Mizu restaurant, and £39 at Armathwaite Hall and Linthwaite House. Champagne versions run from £42 at Holbeck Ghyll and £50 at Armathwaite Hall to £51 at Gilpin and £61 at Linthwaite House (Storrs Hall adds £15 for a glass). These are the prices published on each hotel's own website in October 2026, and they change, so check before you book.
Do I need to book afternoon tea in the Lake District in advance?: Yes, booking ahead is the safe approach. Storrs Hall asks for 24 hours' notice because everything is made fresh, Holbeck Ghyll serves tea on Tuesdays and Wednesdays only by pre-booking, and Lodore Falls' Mizu tea needs a minimum of two guests. Gilpin, Armathwaite Hall and Linthwaite House don't state a minimum notice online, but all take bookings through their websites or by phone, and Gilpin asks for at least 24 hours' notice of any dietary requirements.
Where can you have an unusual afternoon tea in the Lake District?: Lodore Falls Hotel & Spa on Derwentwater serves a pan-Asian afternoon tea in its Mizu restaurant: chef's sushi, prawn spring rolls, crab cakes and pork belly sticks, then a matcha and yuzu tart and mango and spiced vanilla scones, for £38 per person with a minimum of two guests, served 12 to 5pm. For a group of ten or more, the hotel also sells an afternoon tea package in its private Falls Cabana overlooking Lodore Falls, at £75 per head for three hours of exclusive use (the hotel's April 2026 price sheet).
Which Lake District afternoon teas cater for vegan, gluten-free or dairy-free diets?: Armathwaite Hall offers vegan and coeliac menus with prior notice, and Lodore Falls publishes a vegetarian version of its traditional tea. Gilpin Lake House and Holbeck Ghyll ask you to give allergy or dietary details when you book, Gilpin by at least 24 hours ahead. Storrs Hall says it cannot offer a full dairy-free, gluten-free or vegan tea, and Linthwaite House doesn't publish its dietary policy for afternoon tea, so ask before booking.