Holidays
HF Book Club in the Southern Lake District: Lakeland Writers & Poets

HF Book Club in the Southern Lake District: Lakeland Writers & Poets

4 nights

Jul

104kg CO2

4 nights from

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Members

From

£759

Non-members

From

£789

Groups of 10+

or call

020 3974 8865

The simple beauty of the Southern Lake District has stirred the imagination of visitors for centuries. Stay at our historic country house in Coniston and delve into a variety of works linked to these stunning landscapes. Look out on some of the very same scenes that inspired the likes of William Wordsworth and Beatrix Potter and take part in discussion groups guided by an expert leader. Visits to two of Wordworth’s former homes – and Dove Cottage and Rydal Mount – and the company of fellow literature lovers make for an enriching and sociable weekend ideal for solo travellers and book clubs.

What You’ll Love

Meeting like-minded book lovers
Discussing a variety of literary works
Enjoying a guided sightseeing visit
Discussion groups with our expert leaders

What's Included

Free-flowing literary discussions throughout your holiday
Transport to and from venues on your excursion day
Entry to Dove Cottage & Rydal Mount
Comfortable en-suite accommodation in our country house
Cream tea on arrival day
Cooked or continental breakfast every morning
Daily packed lunches
Three-course evening meals, plus tea & coffee
Easy-to-follow routes, maps, and information available in our Discovery Point if you want to explore independently

Itinerary

All our carefully-curated itineraries are designed by our experts. While we make every effort to adhere to the described itinerary, we may take alternative routes or adapt the running order for weather and/or operational reasons.

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Check-in at the hotel is available from 16:00. If you are a member you can arrive at the house from 14:00. Enjoy a complimentary cream tea at 16:30 and meet other guests.

Our excursion day takes us to Wordsworth’s stomping grounds in Grasmere and Rydal: Dove Cottage and Rydal Mount. There will also be time to visit Grasmere village and the church where Wordsworth was laid to rest.

On our book club breaks, your leader team will facilitate discussions about the themes and topics featured in their chosen titles and there’ll be an open forum to discuss opinions.

A Passionate Sisterhood: The Sisters, Wives & Daughters of the Lake Poets by Kathleen Jones

A Passionate Sisterhood explores the often-untold lives of the women connected to the Lake Poets: sisters, wives, and daughters. Through their letters and journals, it reveals their sacrifices, rivalries, illnesses, loves and thwarted ambitions, showing how much these women sustained, and suffered, within the Romantic circle.

The Bay by Julia Rampen

In The Bay, Rampen weaves the story of Arthur, a lonely widower who once worked the Morecambe Bay cockling flats, and Suling, a young undocumented migrant in debt and danger. Their unlikely friendship forms amid tides of prejudice, loss, and the harsh beauty of the shifting sands above Morecambe Bay.

Towards Mellbreak by Marie-Elsa Bragg

In Towards Mellbreak, Bragg tells the story of Harold Marras, a hill farmer in 1970s Cumbria, labouring to sustain his family’s ancestral farm amid sweeping agricultural, bureaucratic and environmental changes. Amid the harsh landscape he clings to ritual, faith and familial bonds as roots vanish.

Enjoy a leisurely breakfast before making your way home.

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Accommodation

Monk Coniston

With a desirable address overlooking Coniston Water (the inspiration for Arthur Ransome’s 1930 novel, Swallows and Amazons), this characterful Grade II-listed house delights with lakeside and woodland walks from the doorstep, décor that stays true to the period feel, and plenty of Beatrix Potter references. While the children's author and illustrator did not live at the Monk Coniston estate (her beloved home was Hill Top, bought in 1905 with the royalties from The Tale of Peter Rabbit), she campaigned with the National Trust to save it from development. She then purchased the entire estate in 1930 and as the new owner she immediately sold half to the organisation, bequeathing them the other half in her will.

A warm welcome
We want you to feel comfortable from the moment you arrive. You’ll find a welcome pack in your room with guest registration forms, menus, order forms for dinners and picnic lunches, the Wi-Fi password, and the front door code. Our houses are locked at night, so we recommend noting the Duty Manager’s number on arrival in case of an emergency (or getting locked out).

Evening entertainment

While evening entertainment varies from house to house, HF Holidays Inter-House Quiz night held after dinner on Wednesdays is a weekly staple. Your HF Holidays leader may be around for tips on guided and self-guided waking routes as well as visit-worthy local attractions.

Walks talks
Our HF Holidays walk leaders host guided walking information briefings before dinner on guided walking holiday arrival days. This is followed by a group Walks Talk for information on the following day’s guided walks (held before dinner every evening). Self-guided walking guests are, of course, welcome.

The walking day
Prior to setting off on guided walks, your HF Holidays Leader will run you through a short safety briefing. There’s also an up-to-date weather forecast on display at the house to ensure you have appropriate clothing and footwear. If you choose to do your own walks or are on a self-guided walking holiday, we ask that you please complete an Independent Walker Card each day. These can be found near the Discovery Point in the house.

Check in & check out

You are welcome to check in from 4pm at the earliest. HF Members can check in earlier, from 2pm. On arrival, you’ll enjoy a complimentary cream tea and get to meet your fellow guests, our HF Holidays Leaders, and the rest of the friendly team. Check out 10am.

• 30 well-appointed guest rooms • Exclusive occupancy: 38 guests minimum • Check in from 4:00pm • For members check in from 2:00pm • Free Wi-Fi • Free on-site parking • Boot room and drying room • Travel cot • Discovery Point offering a wide range of local area maps, route guides, and information for self-guided walks • Books and games to borrow • Licensed bar • Lounge • Garden with putting green and croquet lawn • Activity barn • Electric vehicle charging point - Please note, you will need to bring your own cables to use this EV charging point

Seasonal dining, tailored for you

Our team of skilled chefs design our dinner menus to showcase the best of each season, from warming winter comfort food to vibrant summer dishes, including vegetarian, vegan and high-protein options. We also source fruit and vegetables within a 40-mile radius of each house, open every break with a Chef’s Special menu inspired by dishes and flavours of the local area, and are able to adapt dishes to suit special dietary requirements.

Welcome Cream Tea

What better way to start your stay than with a cream tea, served fresh on arrival to make you feel instantly at home. A quintessentially English tradition, our scones are baked in-house and served with preserves and clotted cream, providing the perfect opportunity to meet fellow walkers.

A hearty breakfast to start the day

Start the day with a freshly-prepared cooked breakfast and a wide choice from our continental buffet, including hot drinks, juices and fresh fruit. Our team offer a quick and friendly service, leaving you fuelled and ready for your day’s adventures.

Our famous picnic lunch

Our personalised picnic lunches are perfect for a day out walking, ready to enjoy when hunger strikes. Choose from a large selection of fresh sandwiches and salads, freshly baked cakes and snacks, including the ever-popular Freddos chocolate bar! Everything is designed to fit neatly into your rucksack, and all of the packaging we provide is recyclable or compostable.

3-course evening meals

Our à la carte evening menus feature a wide choice of starters, mains, and desserts, made with seasonal ingredients and, wherever possible, herbs and vegetables from our own gardens. Shared around sociable tables, dinners are relaxed occasions, with drinks available to order at the table or from the bar, and a traditional Sunday roast to round off the week.

Designed with your comfort in mind, Monk Coniston has 30 well-appointed guest rooms available in three categories: Classic, Premium, and Superior.

Classic Rooms are comfortable en-suite guest rooms, ideal for a peaceful night's sleep. Amenities include free Wi-Fi, tea and coffee-making facilities, toiletries (hand wash, shampoo, and shower gel), and a TV.

Premium Rooms are more spacious en-suite guest rooms*. Amenities include free Wi-Fi, tea and coffee-making facilities, toiletries (hand wash, shampoo, body lotion, shower gel), and a 32-inch TV. Extras include bathrobes, slippers.

Superior Rooms are even more spacious en-suite guest rooms offering upgraded views of the surroundings*. Amenities include free Wi-Fi, tea and coffee-making facilities, toiletries (hand wash, shampoo, body lotion, shower gel), and a 32-inch TV. Extras include bathrobes, slippers.

We love: The rooms with a garden or lake view. We also love Room 9 on the first floor for its original features and beautiful views across the gardens and fields that slope down to the shores of Coniston Water.

The Choose Your Room service is available at our UK country houses, allowing you the option of choosing and confirming a specific room for an extra charge of £30 per room. This is subject to availability. Upgrade supplements apply.

Room supplements

Superior	Premium single	Premium double/twin	Choose your room
£25 pppn	£20 pppn	£20 pppn	£30 per room

*Views and layout reflect each properties unique character and location

For accessibility and assistance information, please contact our expert team on 020 3974 8865 or view the accessibility information online for Monk Coniston

View more details View holidays here

More Information

Carbon Footprint - 104kg CO2

We see it as our responsibility to minimise our emissions, not just for this year but every year to come. Our work with sustainability experts, ecollective, has enabled us to measure our carbon footprint and create a strategy to reduce the carbon intensity of our product by 5% each year. Our ambition is to be net zero by 2040 – earlier if we can.

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2026

Back to dates

Mon 20 Jul – Fri 24 Jul 2026

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Single Price - Land Only

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Single Supplement

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Non-members

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Itinerary: 4 Nights - Book Club

All our carefully-curated itineraries are designed by our experts. While we make every effort to adhere to the described itinerary, we may take an alternative route, or vary the running order for weather and/or operational reasons.

All holidays are subject to availability. Supplements may apply.

HF Book Club in the Southern Lake District: Lakeland Writers & Poets

What You’ll Love

What's Included

Itinerary