Lake District tempts recession trade with buses, trains, paths - and petrol expenses

You can get �60 off a trip to see the ospreys at Bassenthwaite. Or try out the new minibus which is venturing into the wilds of WasdaleTwo different approaches to travel are being tried in the Lake District as the UK dips back into recession, with a consequent threat to the appeal of holiday breaks in remoter parts of the country.The Overwater Hall hotel by Bassenthwaite Lake and Skiddaw is going for the eye-catching and obviously appealing. They will pay 20p a mile towards petrol for the journey to Cumbria, for guests staying at least four nights between the start of May and the end of September.That knocks �60 off the �400 cost of the minimum stay for visitors from London, and the hotel's co-owner Angela Hyde says:We're calling it fuel relief and hoping that it goes some way to encouraging people to visit our beautiful region. We want to do all we can to make sure that tourists have access to one of the UK's most stunning national parks.At the more modest end of things, just about every organisation you can think of in the Western Lakes, which are relatively under-visited compared with the honeypots around Windermere, Langdale and Derwentwater, has got together to support a multi-vehicle travelling scheme. It uses trains, buses and feet to connect some of the area's loneliest and most beautiful places, in a manner which avoids car travel on small and windy roads but still allows enough time for a day's there-and-back-again trip.The lynchpin is a new minibus into Wasdale from Seascale station on the coast, operating this year only on Saturdays but set to expand into the rest of the week if usage this year suggests sufficient demand. Its timings are co-ordinated with trains on the Cumbrian Coast line and ? via advice of timings for those who take the lovely walk from Wasdale over to Eskdale ? the 'Little Ratty' miniature trains of the Ravenglass and Eskdale line between the coast and the hamlet of Boot.The bus stops at Nether Wasdale, Wasdale Head and, by request, points in betwee, which opens the way to many other walks. Two years ago, I had my hike-of-the-year from Boot to Keswick, and its many buses, over the Scafells. As Katie Read, West Cumbria's tourism manager, says: Community transport is especially important for a rural county such as�Cumbria. The most beautiful parts of the county in the�Western Lake District�are often in accessible to those who wish to use public transport. Innovative projects such as this scheme in Wasdale are a great example of what can be achieved and enables access to some real hidden gems, whilst minimising the environmental impact. Something that we at West�Cumbria�Tourism whole heartedly support.Credit then to Northern Rail, Wasdale Meeting, West�Cumbria�Tourism, the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway, Mid-Copeland Parish Partnership,�Cumbria�County Council, the Lake District National Park and Copeland Borough Council, who sorted this out. More info is here on the website of Sims Travel who run the bus.Lake DistrictTransportTransport policyNational parksHotelsPetrol pricesMartin Wainwrightguardian.co.uk © 2012 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

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