Dales Way
8 Days & 7 Nights 4.6 Read 34 reviews- Walk from the Yorkshire Dales to the Lake District
- Explore the historic ruins of Bolton Priory and Bardon Tower
- Discover cobbled villages and classic English market towns
- Feast on pints of real local ale and giant Yorkshire Puddings!
- Finish your walk by the glistening shores of Lake Windermere
What To Expect
Trip Style:
Self Guided | Go at your own pace on an independent active holiday.
Activity:
Inn to Inn Walking | A classic point to point walking trip, staying in a different location each night
Ideal if you have an interest in:
National Parks & Trails
Inspiration:
- Most Popular
Grade & Terrain
This walk is graded moderate and the walking surface is on everything from good walking trails to forestry roads and rough hillsides. The daily distances are anywhere between 9 and 16 miles, therefore you will have a good fitness level in order to make the most out of your tour.
Navigation
This route is waymarked and much of it follows a well laid out path so you will not need to be a very experienced navigator with a map and compass. However, as with any self-guided walk, it would be very helpful to have at least some navigating experience.
Accommodation Information
One of the highlights of this tour is the high standard of the accommodation. We specifically choose the hotels, inns, guesthouses and B&B’s to ensure that you enjoy every minute of your stay. They all offer a warm welcome to walkers, traditional hospitality and delicious local food.
Accommodation Location
We will always try and accommodate you at the locations detailed in your itinerary. Occasionally, because of limited availability, there is the option to be accommodated at an alternative location. In the unlikely event that we have to accommodate you elsewhere we will advise you of this before confirming your booking.
Single Rooms
This independent walking vacation is available to solo walkers but as all our vacations are priced per person based on two sharing there is a single supplement payable to cover the additional costs we incur.
Meals
A hearty breakfast is included each morning. Lunch and dinner are not included so you are free to choose from the available options. Most of your accommodations will more than happy to provide a packed lunch on request and this can be booked on arrival. Dinner is available either at your accommodation or nearby pubs or restaurants.
- 7 Nights in B&B’s, guest houses, small hotels and country inn’s
- 7 Breakfasts
- Daily luggage transfers
- Access to maps, GPX tracks and daily route information with the Macs Aventure Smartphone App
- All your trip documents (including an Info Pack) provided digitally through your online "My Account"
- 24/7 Telephone support from our UK office
- Travel insurance (required)
- Travel to Ilkley
- Travel from Bowness-on-Windermere
- Lunches & Dinners
- Drinks and snacks
- Personal equipment
- Additional Nights
When To Go
This trip is available to start on any day of the week from the beginning of April and end of October. You can start on any date that suits your travel plans, subject to availability.
In order to help with availability, we recommend either booking an extra night in Bowness at the end of your walk or avoiding finishing in Bowness at the weekend - many B&B's only accept 2 night bookings at the weekend in Bowness and it can make it more difficult to confirm your trip if you do finish at the weekend.
Getting to the Start
By Air
The closest airport is Leeds Bradford and there are frequent bus links to Ilkley. Travel time from Leeds Bradford Airport via Leeds is approx. 1 hour. Manchester Airport is approx. 2 hours 30 minutes by public transport to IIkley via Leeds. London Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted are probably the best options for those travelling from outside the UK. From the airport you would travel to Kings Cross, where trains leave approx. every half an hour to IIkley via Leeds.
By Rail
Ilkley is well serviced via Leeds (approx. 30 minutes) which connects with most major towns, trains leave every hour from Leeds. For more information check out the National Rail Enquiries web page.
Getting from the End
By Air
Manchester Airport is the closest airport to Bowness-on-Windermere and it takes approx. 2 hours 30 minutes to reach by train.
By Rail
Windermere is the closest train station which is a short 10 minute bus or taxi journey from Bowness-on-Windermere. From here you can connect to most major towns in the UK, including Manchester (2 hours), Newcastle (3 hours), Glasgow (3 hours) and London (4 hours).
Baggage Transfer
Your bags will be transferred from your accommodation as per your itinerary and moved onto your next overnight location. We ask you to limit your luggage to one bag of up to 20kg per person. Please ensure that you do not bring more than one bag of 20kg, as if this occurs, the luggage transfer company will ask you to pay an additional fee (approx. £8.50 per day, per bag). This additional payment, should it be necessary, needs to be made locally to the driver and in cash. Any additional bags need to labelled as if they are not labelled we cannot guarantee that they will reach you at the next accommodation.
If you are travelling from far afield and do have more than one bag it is possible to arrange for the extra luggage to be stored whilst you are on the tour for a fee of £25 per bag. These additional bags would be picked up at your accommodation at the start point (St Bees or Kirkby Stephen) and dropped off wherever you finish depending on the itinerary you choose to do. Please contact us if you are interested in this option.
General Information
The distances and ascent/descents are approximations of the recommended routes. Please be prepared by packing all necessary items, for example, proper rain gear (jacket and pants), sun hat, sunscreen. Your information pack has a detailed equipment list which includes standard walking gear such as good walking boots or shoes, warm and waterproof clothes for the cooler months and lightweight clothing for summer, and a day pack.
ONLINE DOCUMENTS:
At Macs Adventure we care about the environment! We're taking action to minimize the impact we have by converting our tour documentation for digital delivery. On this tour all your detailed tour information will be digitally delivered. You will have access to this documentation via "My Account" on our website.
Equipment
Please be prepared by packing all necessary items, for example, proper rain gear (jacket and pants), sun hat, sunscreen. Your information pack has a detailed equipment list which includes standard walking gear such as good walking boots or shoes, warm and waterproof clothes for the cooler months and lightweight clothing for summer, and a day pack.
Travel Insurance
It is a requirement of booking this tour with Macs Adventure that you have suitable travel insurance which covers you for the activity and emergency evacuation and hospital care.
Itinerary
Day 1 Arrive Ilkley Day 2 Ilkley to Burnsall 13 miles / 21 km Day 3 Burnsall to Hubberholme - 15 miles, 24 km 15 miles / 24 km Day 4 Hubberholme to Dent Head (Cowgill) 17 miles / 27 km Day 5 Dent Head (Cowgill) to Sedbergh 9.5 miles / 15 km Day 6 Sedbergh to Burneside/Overnight Kendal 15.5 miles / 25 km Day 7 Burneside to Bowness-on-Windermere 9.5 miles / 15 km Day 8 Onward TravelThe Macs Adventure Way
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