Greystoke House, Keswick

Greystoke House is a small, family-run bed and breakfast on Leonard Street, a few minutes' walk from the middle of Keswick, and it is built for the kind of trip where the dog does most of the walking. The hosts describe it plainly as a dog-friendly house, and guests arriving with one report a welcome that matches.

Position is the reason to book. The town centre, the lake shore at Derwentwater and the paths up onto Latrigg and Walla Crag are all within walking distance, so a car is optional and a wet day still has somewhere to go. Keswick is among the most dog-tolerant towns in the Lakes, and the pubs and cafes on the surrounding streets will not blink at a muddy spaniel.

The cooked breakfast is the other thing guests return to, with local produce and Winter Tarn butter mentioned often enough to count as a fair expectation. Rooms are on the smaller side, worth weighing if you travel with a large breed that needs floor space, and this is a shared-corridor house rather than a self-contained cottage, so a dog that reacts to comings and goings is a poor fit.

One practical point on cost. A dog charge is added to the booking, and it has not always reached the hosts by the time guests arrive, which can make checkout briefly awkward until the confirmation is produced. Keep the booking paperwork showing the dog fee to hand and it stops being an issue.

It suits a couple or a solo walker with one steady dog who want a proper Keswick breakfast and the fells from the doorstep.