KESWICK
Keswick is a small market town in the Lake district. It is the most popular destination for tourists in the North lakes
Keswick is a small market town of about 5,000 people in the Lake district. It is the most popular destination for tourists in the North lakes and has many hotels, pubs, restaurants and shops. The shops are not just Lake District equipment shops, although there are plenty of these. There are plenty of speciality shops, including a Harry Potter one, for browsing in. The particular lake associated with Keswick is Derwent water. There is also The Theatre by the Lake here with a resident company putting on 9-10 shows a year. The Pencil Museum is well worth a look, being more interesting than it sounds.
Keswick is easily accessed from the M6 motorway a trip of 17 miles from the Penrith junction. Public transport takes a bit longer by a bus from Carlisle. However, it is easy to spend several days in Keswick without having to leave the town.
You can come by bus or car and follow the signs to the town centre, a mere minute away from anywhere, and find yourself in the pedestrianised area where a casual glance around will allow you to see a pub and allow you to orientate you to a trail.
Lower Town
The easiest to spot is The Skiddaw Hotel and next door to it is The King's Arms. Walking further up is Oddfellows Arms. Cross over and look for an alley to Pack Horse Court and The Pack Horse Inn is just inside it. Come back to the street and walk down to The Inn on the Square and down a bit further The Golden Lion.
Now turn and go down the alley beside the Golden Lion which will lead you to a large car park. Over to your right will be The Back Bar. Walk out of the car park main entrance and the road opposite should be Brewery Lane which leads to The Flying Fox in The Keswick Brewery. Leave here and walk back to the car park and turn right along the road. Following the curve round brings you to The Chief Justice of the Common Pleas. Continue down the road and turn left back into the main street and The Bank Tavern is opposite you. If you have the correct timing you could walk away from the pedestrian area and then turn left at the mini roundabout. Cross over and walk past Booth’s supermarket and follow the road round to reach Keswick Rugby Club.
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Books on Beer
A selection of recommended books covering all aspects of beer and brewing. There are books on the history of beer and others on different styles of beer.
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Local CAMRA
Westcumbria CAMRA branch
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Books on pubs
A selection of recommended books on pubs and their history. There are books on the social history of pubs and the design of pubs through the ages.
There are also books on visiting pubs and ones recommending pubs to visit.
Other towns in the Lake District with Pubtrails
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Windermere
Windermere is small down with the railway station for Lake Windermere. A compact town centre and lots of hotels and B & Bs.
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Bowness on Windermere
Windermere seamlessly joins Bowness on Windermere, which as the name suggests, is actually on the lake. Lots of shops, bars and restaurants.
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Ambleside
Ambleside is a centre for walking and camping. It is also on Lake Windermere and you can sail to here from Bowness on Windermere.
Skiddaw Hotel
Skiddaw Hotel has a large conservatory on the front of the building overlooking the main pedestrian area. This has dining style tables and basket seats either side of the main door. Through into the main hotel and the servery is on the back wall. The bar counter takes up most of the wall with doors at either end and bar stools along the counter. The main room has well-padded red banquette seating with tables and comfy chairs, with a fire at one end. Pictures of Keswick adorn the walls. Food all day and dogs allowed in the conservatory.
Have a pint here
Real ale: Old Thumper (Ringwood)
Bitter: Jenning’s Bitter smooth; Shipyard
Lager: Stella 4; Fosters; Warsteiner
Cider: Kingston Press Pearl Jet Stout
King’s Arms Hotel
King’s Arms Hotel has an entrance door in the middle of the hotel front. Reception is round to the left and opposite this a raised area with some small tables and stools. To the right of entrance is three small tables. The servery is along the far wall. The room makes the most of a small area with small tables either side and some in small alcove. White ceiling with low dark beams in subdued lighting Dogs welcome and food served all day with a larger restaurant down some stairs. Servery has bar stools at brown wood counter with brass rails.
Have a pint here
Real ale: Sneck Lifter (£395); Sunbeam; Hobgoblin; Old Thumper (Ringwood); Lancaster Bomber
Lager: Peroni; Fosters; stella 4; Carling; 1664
Cider: Old Rosie; Strongbow
Oddfellow’s Arms ★
Oddfellow’s Arms is a long thin pub with low ceilings. The servery starts about half way along the right hand wall and then stops. This means that the room is wide at the entrance and wide at the rear. It is so narrow at the servery that the tables there only have seating along the wall. The servery space is reduced by quarter of it being for return of glasses. Both front and rear have dining style tables and seating. The walls are wooden panels with photos of horseracing. At the rear right, a door takes you down stairs to a large outside seating area. Food served all day.
Have a pint here
Real ale: Sneck Lifter ; Cocker Hoop; Cumberland; Jenning's Bitter
Lager: Carling; Stella; Fosters
Cider: Strongbow; Thatcher’s Gold Guinness
Pub Jukebox:
Alcohol themed music to listen to while you browse.
scotch on the socks - The Shadows
Pack Horse Inn
Pack Horse Inn is through an alleyway leading to shopping area. It has two entrances to what would have been two different rooms at one time. The right hand one takes you to the start of the opened-out room. There is an alcove style space to the left with a fire in it. The servery is against the far wall and is the usual brown wood and brass rails. The servery continues along with small round or rectangular dining height tables with chairs opposite it. The ceiling is white with some large dark beams. The carpet and walls are mainly red. At the end of the servery the second door is to the left and straight ahead are stairs. The stairs go up to a mezzanine level landing with more seating and tables then further upstairs to a top floor which has more seating and overlooks the stairwell.
Have a pint here
Real ale: Dizzy Blonde; Double Hop; Trooper; Wizard; Cumbria Way; Kettle Head Stout
Bitter: Robinson’s Smooth;
Lager: Fosters; Stella; Budweiser
Cider: Stowford Press; Strongbow Guinness
The Inn on the Square
The Inn on the Square is a large hotel which has had its public areas tastefully modernised in a Scandinavian style. To the left of the entrance is a large seating area with a mixture of low, dining height and tall tables with padded banquette seating and comfy chairs in front of a fire. The furnishings are very colourful. Light comes in the front window and the tall steel topped servery is at the far end. The room is light (with a modern take on chandeliers) and airy. More couch seating is round from the servery.
Have a pint in different surroundings
Real ale: Wainwright Golden; EPA (Marston’s)
Bitter: Jenning’s Bitter Smooth; Shipyard
Lager: Stella 4; Estrella;
Cider: Kingston Press Guinness
The Golden Lion
The Golden Lion is a long thin bar with the tall servery half way up the left wall and onwards. The large picture window overlooking the pedestrian shopping area has several large benches alongside it. There are more rectangular tables and chairs before you reach the servery, which has some seating opposite it. Beyond here are stairs to a lower floor with several long tables on both sides. Food served and dogs welcome. Wood floor, wood tables, wood beams,
Have a pint here
Real ale: Lancaster Bomber; Old Peculiar (4 pumps off ‘back at weekend’)
Bitter: John Smith; East Coast IPA
Lager: Birra Moretti; Stella; Fosters
Cider: Strongbow; Strongbow Dark Fruit Thatcher’s Gold Guinness
The Back Bar
The Back Bar is a separate bar of the Inn on the Square and is more youth orientated and larger than the main offering. The entrance has outside seating on either side and once through the door the servery is straight ahead. The servery area has large square stools and lots of standing room on stone floor where there is pool and TV to the right. To the left, beyond the servery is a wooden floored area with stone walls with a fire at the far end. Paintings of rock stars are on the walls. This has some comfortable seating and small tables and also some dining style tables and chairs for food. The downstairs space is a light and airy modern pub. Upstairs it is darker with lower lighting and lower ceilings. The centre stairs again split the room in two. There is a TV on both end walls and soft seating and low tables for watching sports. Dogs very welcome. Food all day.
Have a pint here
Real ale: ESP; Hobgoblin Gold
Bitter: Jenning’s Bitter Smooth
Lager: Fosters; Estrella
Cider: Kingston’s Press Guinness
The Flying Fox
The Flying Fox is the brewery tap of the Keswick Brewery. It is a small room at the front right of the brewery building. This is a very small room with 5 small tables and lots of stools and a servery in the corner. It also sells souvenirs of the brewery and is the waiting room for tours.
Good Beer Guide 2023, 2024
KPA; Keswick Bitter; Thirst Quencher
The Chief Justice of the Common Pleas ★
The Chief Justice of the Common Pleas (what a terrific name) was an old police and court house combined. One of the seven rooms is still easily recognisable as the court room with dock and benches cleverly utilised. There are two entrances and the right hand one takes you to the servery is against the back wall. There are seven interlinked rooms and a few alcoves, with an outside seating area at the rear.
Have a pint here
Real ale: Big Job; Mandarina Orange; Doombar; Old man; Spun Gold and Citafel (Carlisle) ; Knights Malvern gold
Bitter: John Smith; Shipyard; Punk IPA
Lager: Hop house 13; Carlsberg; San Miguel; 1664; Fosters; Carling; Coors; Bud light
Cider: Magners; Tthatcher’s Gold Guinness
The Bank Tavern
The Bank Tavern has an inn sign depicting Laurel and Hardy. Stan Laurel was born in Ulverston. Entrance is to a large room with lots of tables and chairs at dining height. The pub is geared up for serving traditional pub grub very well. Servery is to the left and is just big enough for the 16 fonts (8 real ale). At the right-hand side, the servery also serves the outside seating which is accessed to the right of the servery or by walking around the corner from the pub. This outside area has a large TV. Low ceiling with thin beams and occasional thick one with an attempt at horse brasses. Low lighting in what is a dark room. The room has pictures of old Keswick and the lakes. There is a smaller room through to the rear. Food most of the day. Dogs welcome.
Have a pint here
Real ale: Sneck Lifter; Jenning’s Bitter; Cumberland; Cocker Hoop; Tanners (Keswick); Old Empire IPA;; Hobgoblin; Wainwright Golden
Lager: Fosters; Birra Moretti; 1664; Stella
Cider: Strongbow dark fruit; Thatcher’s Gold Guinness
The Keswick Rugby
The Keswick Rugby club has limited opening hours and in the winter this is reduced to Thurs and Friday evening from 7, and the weekend. The entrance is to large function room with lots of long tables and chairs that can be changed around to suit the occasion. At the far left is a hatch for serving the hall and a door to a small bar room. The servery is against the right wall and there is a fireplace opposite it. There are a couple of tall tables and stools. Dogs are welcome and there is a large patio area overlooking the ground.
Have a pint here
Real ale: Wainwright Golden; Jenning’s Bitter
Bitter: Jenning’s Bitter Smooth; Cumberland Cream
Lager: Fosters; Estrella
Cider: Kingston Press Pearl Jet Stout
There are two trails (1) is the lower town (green icons) and the other (2) is higher (red icons) up. These are purely arbitrary designations for the purpose of the trails and not a local designation of areas.
You can come by bus or car and follow the signs to the town centre, a mere minute away from anywhere, and find yourself in the pedestrianised area where a casual glance around will allow you to see a pub and allow you to orientate you to a trail.
Once in the pedestrianised area look up the street and see Moot Hall in the middle of it. Walk up past here to the left and discover The Royal Oak. Leaving The Royal Oak turn up left and walk up until near the lights there is The Lakes Bar and Bistro. Continue on across the lights to The Keswick Park Hotel.
Now return down the way you came only turning left at the corner where The George is. Up a little and across the street is The Square Orange.
Continue up the hill and turn right down Derwent St and turn right at the bottom, walking along to The Wainwright. Leaving here walk down the road opposite. First go to the Magnolia Belgium Beer Cafe on the left-hand side then cross over and up a little is 26.
Leave 26 by the rear exit which takes you out to a car park which you can walk around to the right and find the rear entrance to 18/20 Cellar Bar. (Alternatively, just walk back up the hill and turn left to get to it.) Once in here you leave by going up the stairs and turning left out of the front entrance. At the next corner there is Lake Road Inn to the left and up from it at the corner is the Dog and Gun
The Royal Oak ★ ❤
The Royal Oak
The centre entrance takes you down a tiled centre isle with the servery at the end of it. To the right and left of the isle there is a variety of dining style tables, large and small, and chairs around the windows and walls. There are fires on each side wall. There are some low tables with comfortable chairs and stools. The walls are cream with green lower wood. Partitioned off from the main seating area is the servery against the back wall. This has a shelve and stool area against the portioned wall. The servery is brown wood panelling and has lots of standing area in front of it.
There is a special pooch corner for dog of the month to win a free dinner; human food is also excellent.
Have a pint here.
Real ale: K4 new World IPA; Lunar Glow (Beer Studio) ; Wainwright Golden
Lager: Birra Moretti; estrella; Prevha
Cider: Rusted wheel; (Westons); Aspall; Mortimer’s Orchard Guinness
The Lakes Bar and Bistro ★
The Lakes Bar and Bistro seems more bistro than bar as most of the tables beyond the front area are set out for dining. A double shopfront window makes the room light and airy. The attractive servery is on the right-hand wall with some stools. The front area has a couple of low tables and sofas. There is some tall seating beside a shelf area along the window side.
Have a half pint here.
Real ale: Hobgoblin; Marston’s EPA
Bitter: Shipyard;Watsteiner
Lager: Estrella; Fosters; Peroni
Cider: Kingston Press
PLACES TO VISIT WITH PUBTRAILS
The towns and villages highlighted on this web site have a wide variety of pubs and beers in them. All of the places are great to visit, whether for a day or longer, and most have tourist attractions for all of the family.
There is a large variety of pubs throughout the different towns shown below. Some you may wish never to visit again but even discovering these can be interesting. There are pubs that you would not take your wife into. While some you could not take your girlfriend into. A few you would not take either into. However, most of the pubs are very pleasant.
HOME MAP of places visited
Alnwick Ambleside Anstruther Bakewell Bamburgh Barnard Castle Bath Berwick upon Tweed Birnam & Dunkeld Bourton on the Water Bowness on Windermere Bridge of Allan Chester Chichester Dunblane Dunoon Edinburgh Ely Fort William Glasgow Gourock Greenock Helensburgh Inverness Kelso Keswick Knaresbourgh Largs Linlithgow Lyme Regis Melrose Montrose Newton Stewart North Berwick Norwich Oban Pebbles Penzance Portree Pitlochry Quorn Richmond Rothesay St Andrews Seahouses Seend Shrewsbury Skipton Stirling Stratford-upon-Avon Stockton Heath Whitby Windemere Whitstable York
The Keswick Park Hotel
The Keswick Park Hotel has a decent sized outside patio. The small bar can be accessed through the hotel or by a side door. The servery is on the back wall and the room has a sofa and low table with four tall chairs against a ledge along the window. Beyond the servery room is a room with lots of dining tables down the sides.
Have a half pint
Real ale: La’al Yang (Keswick)
Bitter: Cameron’s steamer
Lager: Cruzcampo
Cider: Appleshed Guinness
The George Hotel
The George Hotel
Once in the door there is seating to both sides. To the left there is more of a snug room feel to the space while to the right there are tables and chairs. The servery is to the rear right and up a step. The whole room has a low ceiling with beams and low lighting and dark wood. There is a large standing area in front of the servery. There is a large restaurant to the rear.
Have a pint here
Real ale: Wainwright Golden; SneckLifter; Jenning’s Bitter; Cocker Hoop; Cumberland; Brakspear
Bitter: Shipyard; Cumberland cream
Lager: Fosters; Birra Moretti; Stella4
The Square Orange
The Square Orange designed with the aim of being a continental offering. It serves food (pizzas and tapas) beer, coffee, cake and wines. The beers include real ale and continental lagers. Wednesdays are live music evenings. The small servery is on the centre of the left wall. The dark wooden servery looks old and has an attractive old gantry behind it. Eclectic mix of tables and chairs crushed together although not oppressively so, as it is quite a relaxing place. Though how old school desks at to the charm! There is bench seating outside of the shop window. Dogs are welcome. Loads of blackboards (school again) giving lots of information so be careful not to miss something.
Have a pint here.
Real ale: Rydal pale ale (Tirelessly); Nut Brown (Carlisle)
Lager: Leffe; Erdinger; San Miguel; Birra Moretti
Cider: Aspall
The Wainwright ★
The Wainwright Pub has a little seating outside by the door. The entrance takes you to a room on the right, a room straight ahead and veering right a back room beyond. The square servery serves all three spaces. The right-hand room has dining style and chairs; main room has some tables and many tall stools making use of shelves to rest drink while the back room has large wooden tables. the ceiling has some very large beams on ceiling and some small ones. The green walls are decorated with photos. Maps and drawings of the lakes. Food is served and dogs are welcome. 10% discount for CAMRA members on real ale (nearly a 40p saving)
Have a pint here
Has been West Cumbria CAMRA pub of the year runner-up in 2016
Regular in Good Beer Guide, including 2023, 2024, 2025
Real ale: Amazon Amber (Bowness Bay); Gold wing; Another Fine Mess (Ulverston); Oktohop Black IPA (Great Corby); RHYD ( Fell); Tinderbox IPA; Wainwright Golden
Bitter: John Smith; Jenning’s Bitter Smooth
Lager: Heineken;
26
26 is a pleasant bar/café/bistro. There is seating to the right by the window then the servery, with some heavy bar stools, starts on the right-hand wall. To the left of the door the main room, in front of the servery, has a variety of seating and table heights. There is further seating down to the left and this leads to the rear entrance close to the car park. Tea, coffee, cakes, meals, beer and dogs allowed. Often has music evenings.
Have a pint here
Real ale: Loweswater Gold
Lager: Stella; San Miguel
Magnolia now The Pocket Cafe Bar
Magnolia is now called The Pocket Cafe Bar is a bar café that actually puts some thought into the bar part of it. It serves several real ales and has three fridges stalked with Belgium beer. Once in the centre door there is seating to either side. The tall servery starts half way up the right-hand wall. There is a lot of wood about – old wooden floor and the right-hand wall wooden planks – as well as old wooden tables to give it that old café feel. The room is very light as front is glazed like a shop window.
CAMRA pub of season 2016
have a pint here
Real ale: Eden Best; Eden pale; Another Fine Mess (Ulverston)
Bitter: Badlands Pale Ale ; New World IPA
Lager : Heifer Hefeweissbier; Whistling Pig Pilsner; Jimmy Howell Helles lager; Grimbergen Blonde
Cider: Thistley Cross
18/20 Cellar Bar
18/20 Cellar Bar is a small bar down stairs, at the right hand side of the restaurant. The bar can also be entered from the rear car park. The bar has low ceiling and lighting with the servery in the corner. There are some dining height tables and some low tables with couches. Several TVs and food available.
Have a half pint
Real ale: Forty Niner; Ringwood
Lager: Peroni; Estrella; Fosters
Cider: Thatcher’s Gold; Kingston Press Pearl Jet Stout
Lakes Road Inn ★
Lakes Road Inn is going for a modern rustic feel with lots of, predominately green, in various shades, painted wood and real fire. The corner door opens into a wood dominated room with a fire, flanked by shelves, on the small right-hand wall. This gives a cosy home feel to the pub. The room opens up a little with seating and three/four tables on both sides and the servery at the far end. To the right of the servery is another small seating area with four tables. Outside seating, dogs allowed and food available most of the day.
Have a pint here
Real ale: Unicorn; Trooper; Dizzy Blonde
Bitter: Robinson’s Smooth
Lager: Fosters; Birra Moretti; Carling; Hawkshead
Guinness
Dog and Gun ★
Dog and Gun is a small pub which is very popular with locals and tourists which lots of real ales and nice food. It is a thin pub with an entrance at either end of the servery. The right-hand entrance has a small room to the right with small tables and seating on a wooden floor. To the left is the servery against the back wall. Opposite the servery is some seating around a large table at the start, followed by banquette seating along the window wall with tables and chairs. This continues into the corner where the second entrance is. The low ceiling has dark beams with coins stuck in them. There are assorted pictures of old lake scenes on the wall accompanied by walking paraphernalia. Not a lot of standing room between bar stools and seats at the tables when occupied.
Have one here
CAMRA Good Beer Guide 2024, 2025
Real ale: Lake Land Gold (Hawkshead); Red (Hawkshead); Mutineers (Derwent); Jubilee (Kirkby Lonsdale); Loweswater Gold; Greene King IPA; Old Peculier; Wolf and Bang Ale (Keswick – special for pub)
Lager: Peroni; Amstel; Peroni; San Miguel; Stella; Blue Moon
Cider: Thatcher’s Gold
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