Welcome to the new Peak District Holiday website – your one-stop shop for holiday accommodation in the Peak District National Park
We have a selection of cottages, hotels, bed & breakfasts and caravan & camp sites to suit every taste and every budget.
For anyone looking to take a Peak District Holiday, please have a look around this site.
Probably the favourite holiday in the Peak is to rent a cottage – this gives you your own space, away from other people, unlike hotels, B&B, etc. You can come and go as you please – the ultimate freedom on holiday.
There are many reasons why the Peak District is great for holidays – there are 1,800 miles of trails and footpaths and lots of hills for hiking, mountain biking and horse riding. There is also wheelchair access to some of the hiking trails with vehicles adapted to wheelchairs. Rock climbing is another activity that has great potential in the Peak District National Park. The Roaches, Stanage Edge and other cliffs are some of the best rock climbing places in the world. Other activities underground and in the sky include the many natural caves and old mines that can be explored and paragliding from Mam Tor.
The National Park is basically landlocked, but there are three large reservoirs that offer the opportunity for many water sport holidays such as sailing, canoeing and fishing. A theme park in Staffordshire, Alton Towers is the most visited park in the UK. It has two hotels, golf courses, a conference centre and a spa. Its rides are great fun for children of all ages.
Nearby there is some of the best food in the UK. Known all over the world it is available in the National Park. Hartington Stilton, Bakewell Pudding, Thornton’s Chocolates, Ashbourne Gingerbread and Buxton Mineral Water are a few of the treats available. The hotels, cafes and pubs that display the Peak Cuisine Symbol signify that they offer one dish on the menu that is sourced locally.
In the National Park area, development is carefully controlled to preserve the special character of the place. Churches from early Christianity have been added to and modified throughout the centuries. Visitors looking for ancient architecture, carvings, and Norman and Saxon fonts will find plenty to enjoy. There are Elizabethan country houses, prehistoric hillforts and the tombs of the first farmers to inhabit the area. Also, visitors will see Roman forts and Viking crosses. It is truly like a trip through time from early man to the present making the Peak an educational holiday.
For holidaymakers who love the wild things the National Park offers eight special sites where the most interesting birds, mammals, flowers and shrubs flourish in the gorgeous natural habitat of the park. The vale of Edale, Yarncliff Wood at Padley Gorge, Wye Valley, the Roaches, Coombes Valley, Lathkill Dale and two reservoirs Carsington Water and Tittesworth all have spectacular scenery and abundant wildlife.
The residents of the park, the Peak Park authority and the National Trust all work together to make sure visitors are able to experience the beauty and history of this wonderful place.
In 1951, the Peak District National Park was designated the first national park in the British Isles. It is the second most visited national park in the world only having fewer visitors than Mount Fuji National Park in Japan. The beautiful moorland or Dark Peak in the north is one of the reasons people visit year after year. The White Peak in the southern part is inhabited and has easy access to major cities such as Sheffield and Manchester.
The history of the Peak District goes back to the dawn of man and it is an interesting place for visitors to see evidence of activity from the Mesolithic era as well as palaeoenvironmental evidence from the caves in Dovedale. Visitors can see Neolithic earthworks or burial mounds at Margery Hill as well as stone circles from the Bronze Age and Iron Age. There is not much evidence of the Roman occupation, but they mined the area and enjoyed the geothermal spring at Buxton. The ruins of Peveril Castle at the foot of Winnats Pass are from the time of William the Conqueror.
Buxton was developed to rival the spa at Bath in the late 18th century, but Mary, Queen of Scots took the water there in 1573 and is a superb base for exploring the Peak District. During Victorian times the waters were considered healing and in 1863 the railway opened the area to thousands of visitors.
Click here for Peak District cottages – or click here for luxury cottages if you feel like spoiling yourself.