Best Lakeside Walks in England
Written by UK Hidden Gems Editorial
Updated 5 August 2026
The best lakeside walks in England are Nene Park, Buttermere, Prior Park, Fleetwith Pike, Raven Crag, Carminowe Creek, Panshanger Park and Cherry Hinton Hall.
There is something calming about walking beside water, and England has lakes and lakeside parks to suit every mood. This national round-up brings together eight of the best, spread right across the country.
In the Lake District you can circle the clear waters of Buttermere beneath its high fells, climb Fleetwith Pike at the valley head, or look straight down Thirlmere from Raven Crag. Down in Cornwall, the wooded arm of Carminowe Creek runs quietly off The Loe near Helston.
Near Bath, the Georgian garden of Prior Park drops through lakes and a cascade to a rare Palladian Bridge. Closer to the flatter east, Nene Park spreads across meadows and three lakes beside Peterborough, while Panshanger Park fills the Mimram valley in Hertfordshire and Cherry Hinton Hall offers an ornamental lake on the edge of Cambridge.
Some are wild mountain sheets of water, others gentle landscaped grounds, but each gives you a shoreline to follow at your own pace. Here are eight lakeside walks to seek out across England.
Nene Park
Photo: Chris Heaton via Geograph.org.uk
Explore Nene Park On the western edge of Peterborough, Nene Park is a large country park straddling the River Nene, with its busiest part at Ferry Meadows. There the park spreads across meadows, woodland and three lakes, threaded with walking and cycling trails.
You will find sailing, kayaking, boat hire, play areas, a miniature railway, a cafe and a visitor centre, and a heritage steam railway runs through it too. Opened in 1978, the park stretches for several miles along the river and makes a well-used green space for the city.
With water on so many sides, it is an easy, welcoming choice for a lakeside walk in Cambridgeshire.
Buttermere
Photo: Anne Burgess via Geograph.org.uk
Discover Buttermere Deep among the fells of the north-western Lake District, Buttermere lies in one of the loveliest, least spoiled corners of the region. The clear sheet of water is cradled between steep mountains, with a path running right around the shore, an easy and much-loved circuit of about four and a half miles.
Partway round, the route passes through a short tunnel cut through solid rock by a local landowner so walkers could follow the shore. The little village has a couple of old inns and a small church on a knoll.
High fells such as Haystacks and Red Pike ring the water and mirror in it on a calm day.
Prior Park
Photo: Stephen Richards via Geograph.org.uk
Prior Park hangs on a steep hillside above Bath, its lawns and lakes framing sweeping views back over the city. The Georgian landscape garden, now in the care of the National Trust, sends winding paths past a chain of lakes and a cascade, a Gothic temple, a grotto and an ice house, all leading toward the showpiece: a Palladian Bridge of around 1755, one of just a few of its design anywhere.
It was laid out from the 1730s for the quarry owner Ralph Allen, with the poet Alexander Pope and, later, Capability Brown lending a hand. No car park serves the site, so people walk up from town or come by bus.
Fleetwith Pike
Photo: Tom Richardson via Geograph.org.uk
Explore Fleetwith Pike Rising steeply at the head of Buttermere in the Lake District, Fleetwith Pike stands over the top of Honister Pass. Its sharp north-west ridge, Fleetwith Edge, climbs straight up from the valley near Gatesgarth, ringed by crags, and gives a bold line to the summit.
Low on this ridge stands a white memorial cross to Fanny Mercer, a young woman killed in a fall here in 1887. From the top the view runs down over Buttermere and the surrounding fells, a fine reward for a stiff pull.
It is a proper Cumbrian hill walk with the lake laid out below you all the way up.
Raven Crag
Photo: Michael Graham via Geograph.org.uk
Discover Raven Crag On the western side of the Thirlmere reservoir in the Lake District, Raven Crag is a craggy fell whose steep face rises above the water near the dam. A path climbs through forestry to the wooded summit, ending in made paths and a boardwalk to a viewpoint on the brink of the crag.
From there you get a classic view straight down the length of Thirlmere and over the dam. Just behind the summit lies Castle Crag, a smaller top holding the earth ramparts of an Iron Age hillfort.
The fell rises to about 461 metres, so it is a short but rewarding climb with a big payoff over the water.
Carminowe Creek
Photo: Lewis Clarke via Geograph.org.uk
Visit Carminowe Creek Carminowe Creek is the quieter arm of The Loe, the freshwater pool that sits behind the shingle bank of Loe Bar on the Penrose Estate near Helston in Cornwall. It runs as a narrow finger of water fringed by reeds and woodland, off to one side of the main lake.
Paths thread through the wooded valley along the waterside, so the walking here feels sheltered and green rather than open. The whole estate is looked after by the National Trust.
If you want a gentle, tucked-away shoreline stroll well away from the crowds, this leafy Cornish creek is a lovely, restful choice.
Panshanger Park
Photo: Julian Paren via Geograph.org.uk
Explore Panshanger Park In the Mimram valley between Hertford and Welwyn Garden City, Panshanger Park is a country park of around a thousand acres, opened to the public in 2014 on land owned by a quarrying company and managed for wildlife by the local wildlife trust. Its landscape was shaped in part by Capability Brown and Humphry Repton, though the great house at its heart was demolished in the 1950s.
Trails run through woodland, grassland and wetland along a chalk stream and past old lakes, one of them a dragonfly trail. Its best-known feature is the Panshanger Oak, a huge ancient tree protected behind iron railings and one of the finest maiden oaks in the country.
Cherry Hinton Hall
Photo: John Sutton via Geograph.org.uk
Discover Cherry Hinton Hall On the edge of Cambridge, Cherry Hinton Hall is a public park around an old hall, run by the city council. The grounds hold a large ornamental lake with wildfowl, mature trees, a children's play area and a water play area, and wide lawns give plenty of open space for walking and games.
It is the long-standing home of the Cambridge Folk Festival, held here each summer, when the park fills with music. For a relaxed lakeside stroll close to the city, with plenty for younger visitors too, this leafy Cambridgeshire park is an easy and pleasant place to spend an hour or two.
FAQs
Which lakeside walk is best in the Lake District?
Buttermere is a standout, with an easy shore path of about four and a half miles ringed by high Cumbrian fells, while nearby Fleetwith Pike and Raven Crag offer steeper climbs with lake views.
Are these walks suitable for children?
Several are. Nene Park near Peterborough and Cherry Hinton Hall in Cambridge both have play areas and flat, easy paths around water, making them relaxed choices for families in England.
Do any of these gardens have unusual features?
Yes. Prior Park above Bath is home to a rare Palladian Bridge of around 1755, one of only a handful of its design anywhere in the world.
Conclusion
England's lakesides run from wild to gentle, and this round-up shows just how much range there is. You can lace up your boots for a fell-ringed circuit of Buttermere in the Lake District, or take an unhurried loop around the ornamental water at Cherry Hinton Hall near Cambridge.
There are landscaped Georgian grounds at Prior Park above Bath, big country parks such as Nene Park and Panshanger, and the tucked-away Cornish creek of Carminowe. Whether you want a mountain climb with a lake below or a flat, easy shoreline path, there is a route here to match the day and the company you keep.
Bring a flask and take your time by the water. Wherever you happen to be, these are the lakeside walks to seek out across England.
