Car free Cumbria with affordable and easy options from Northern
When going overseas no one thinks twice about not having a car on holiday and now businesses in Cumbria are urging visitors to take the same attitude towards holidays in one of the UK’s most popular counties.
Travelling by train to Cumbria has never been easier.Purse friendly advance rail fares mean low prices on the trains and the extension of the £3 single journey bus fares has meant onward connections are equally affordable.
Northern offers direct trains from Leeds to Carlisle with a journey time of just 2 hours and 40 minutes.
Carlisle is Cumbria’s only city and boasts heritage attractions such as Carlisle Cathedral, alongside restaurants and coffee shops championing local produce plus independent shops. Just outside of Carlisle is the town of Brampton where fine dining and elegant accommodation can be found at Farlam Hall or alternatively explore the town’s antiques shops or take a stroll around accessible country park Talkin Tarn.
Further afield, a pretty rail route through the Cumbrian countryside connects visitors to towns including Maryport, Whitehaven and Ravenglass. Whitehaven is Cumbria’s premier port town, once famed for its imports of rum and spices from the Caribbean – it’s how Grasmere Gingerbread found their ingredients once upon a time. Today it is home to fascinating museums and a picturesque harbour. The town of Maryport meanwhile is a pretty fishing village with an aquarium.
Journey yet further south to explore the breathtaking headlands of St Bees or historic Ravenglass, home of Muncaster Castle and Ravenglass to Eskdale Railway. All of these places offer great walking routes both along the coastline or into the nearby fells.