We run three scenic tours of the Lake District, and the question we are asked most often is simply: which one? The honest answer depends on how much time you have, how much you want to see, and whether an hour on the water at Ullswater sounds like the best part of your day or an hour you would rather spend somewhere else. Here is how the three compare — including who each one is not right for.
The 8 Lakes Morning Tour runs 9:00am to 1:00pm and covers eight lakes, four mountain passes, Castlerigg Stone Circle, Surprise View, Ashness Bridge and the Grasmere Gingerbread Shop — all before lunch, for £79 per person. It is the most comprehensive half-day scenic tour we offer, and it leaves your afternoon completely free.
The 8 Lakes Afternoon Tour is the same route, run from 2:00pm to 6:00pm. Same eight lakes, same stops, same £79 — but with a slow morning first, and afternoon light on the fells instead of morning light. If you are arriving by train on the day, the afternoon departure removes any anxiety about a delayed connection.
The The 10 Lakes Full-day Tour is the full day: 9:00am to 6:00pm, ten lakes, four mountain passes, a one-hour Ullswater Steamers cruise included in the price, Honister Slate Mine, Moss Force waterfall, the Gingerbread Shop, and a proper lunch hour in Keswick. £169 per person, cruise ticket included and pre-booked by us.
The 10 Lakes Full-day Tour adds Buttermere and Crummock Water — two of the most beautiful lakes in the district, tucked behind the Honister Pass where half-day itineraries simply cannot reach — plus the hour on Ullswater itself. On the half-day tours you see Ullswater from the shore; on the full day you spend an hour on it, with Place Fell rising straight out of the water beside you. You also get Honister — the highest and steepest pass in the Lakes, with England's last working slate mine at the summit — and the descent past Moss Force, a waterfall that drops a hundred metres from the open fell.
What it costs you is the rest of your day, and £90 more per person. That is the honest trade. If you have two or more full days in the Lakes, the full day is the better purchase — it is the single most comprehensive one-day Lake District experience we know how to build. If you have one day and other plans in it, the half day is the right call, and you will not feel short-changed: eight lakes in four hours is not a compromise.
Photographers ask this constantly, and the truthful answer is that both work — the route was designed so that neither departure fights the sun. Morning tours get low light on Rydal Water and Grasmere early, with the reflections at their stillest before the day's breeze arrives. Afternoon tours get the warm light later on, and in autumn and winter the 2:00pm departure catches the last golden hour over Derwentwater. If reflections matter most to you, book the morning. If you would rather not set an alarm on holiday, the afternoon exists precisely for you.
We would rather tell you this before you book than have you discover it on the day. The half-day tours move briskly — eight lakes in four hours means the stops are chosen and timed, not lingered over. If your idea of a perfect day is two hours on one lakeshore with a book, a scheduled scenic tour will feel hurried, and a private tour — where the pace is yours — is the better product. The full day, meanwhile, is a genuinely full day: nine hours, four passes, and a lot of landscape. Most guests find the Keswick lunch hour and the Ullswater cruise break it up perfectly, but if a nine-hour day sounds like too much, it probably is — take a half day and love all of it.
All three tours are small-group by design — a maximum of seven guests in the vehicle, with your guide's commentary running throughout every mile, not just at the stops. All three pick up from Windermere Station (first), Bowness Pier 1, and Ambleside library on Kelsick Road, and drop off in reverse order at the end. All three can be cancelled free of charge up to 24 hours before the tour. And all three are available as private tours for your own group — the 8 Lakes route from £459 per group, the Best Ten from £915 — which at full vehicle capacity can work out cheaper per person than the scheduled seats.
The 8 Lakes tour is a half-day scenic tour (morning 9am–1pm or afternoon 2pm–6pm, £79 per person) covering eight lakes, four mountain passes, Castlerigg Stone Circle, Surprise View, Ashness Bridge and the Grasmere Gingerbread Shop. The 10 Lakes Full-day Tour is a full day (9am–6pm, £169 per person) covering ten lakes including Buttermere and Crummock Water, with a one-hour Ullswater Steamers cruise included, Honister Slate Mine, Moss Force waterfall and a lunch hour in Keswick.
They follow the same route with the same stops. The morning tour (9am–1pm) suits early risers, photographers who want still reflections, and anyone who wants their afternoon free. The afternoon tour (2pm–6pm) suits guests arriving by train on the day, anyone who prefers a slow start, and autumn or winter visitors who want the late golden light.
Yes. The one-hour Ullswater Steamers cruise is included in the £169 tour price and pre-booked by us. You do not need to book anything separately — you simply board.
You could, but we don't recommend it — both tours run the same route, so you would see the same eight lakes twice. For a full day, book the 10 Lakes Full-day Tour instead, or pair a morning scenic tour with a different afternoon tour.
A maximum of seven guests on every tour. We run small minibuses deliberately — everyone gets a window, everyone hears the guide, and the vehicle fits the small passes and lanes that larger coaches cannot use.
Yes. All scheduled tours come with free cancellation up to 24 hours before the tour departs.
Once you’ve chosen your tour: