Lodore Falls Hotel & Spa

Lodore Falls Hotel & Spa sits on the eastern shore of Derwent Water at the foot of the Lodore Falls, in 40 acres of grounds in Borrowdale about five miles south of Keswick. For a dog owner it is a polished, spa-hotel take on a Lakeland break: the falls trail, the lake shore and the Borrowdale fells all start from the front door, so a full day of walking needs no car at all.

Dogs stay in designated rooms in the main hotel. The hotel has quoted £25 per night for a standard room and £35 for a suite, with no published weight limit or breed rule, and beds and bowls are meant to be provided. The spa building's own bedrooms do not take dogs, so anyone wanting the spa with a dog in tow should book a standard room and use the spa separately. Inside, dogs are welcome in the Side Lounge and the Conservatory, where meals are served all day, but not in the two main restaurants or the Lake View Bar seating.

Guests travelling with dogs are warm about the staff, who come across as genuinely fond of dogs, and about the dog-friendly dining area, where a sausage at breakfast is not unheard of. The location wins almost everyone over.

The caveats are specific. The dog dining area can smell distinctly of dog by the end of a busy day. Some guests found their dog-friendly room amounted to a pair of bowls on an upper floor, with a lift too small to share comfortably with a dog on a lead, and one owner paying the dog charge received the bed and bowls only on the second night. Barking carries between neighbouring rooms, and several guests without dogs were billed for one in error, so it is worth checking the bill at checkout. There is no relief area directly outside the entrance; the nearest is a gated field across a road that gets busy in season.

Best suited to walkers who want a comfortable lakeside base with a proper spa and are happy to pay a four-star rate for it. It earns a 4.2/5 paw rating. Ask for a ground-floor room when booking if your dog is young or the stairs would be a struggle.