Hill Top and Hawkshead
Lake DistrictBeatrix Potter's farmhouse retreat: the inspiration for her little books.
Near Sawrey, Cumbria, LA22 0LF
Important notice
M T W T F S S Open
Closed
Opening times for 18 February 2026
Asset Opening time House Closed Garden Closed Shop Closed Hill Top House & Garden
Ticket type With Gift Aid Without Gift Aid Adult (18+) £18.70 £17.00 Child (5-17) under 5s free £9.40 £8.50 Family (2 Adults and up to 3 children) £46.80 £42.50 Family (1 Adult and up to 3 children) £28.10 £25.50 Become a member and discover more than 500 places
- Assistance dogs only
Assistance dogs only in the house. Dogs on leads are welcome in the garden.
- Bookshop
Our second-hand book nook is located in the Visitor Reception.
- Car park
Limited capacity in the car park. Please book your Hill Top tickets in advance. Due to the nature of the site, an accessible parking space is located at the farmhouse. Please ask at Visitor Reception for details.
- Cycle parking
Cycle parking is located outside Visitor Reception. Ask at the Visitor Reception if you want to borrow a lock. Puncture repair kit also available on request.
- Picnic area
Situated in the orchard including accessible picnic benches.
- Shop
Shop is located at the bottom of the orchard and has a selection of unique products available.
- Toilet
Baby items and feminine hygiene available free.
Unfortunately there is no wheelchair or step free access to the upper floor of the house. A video of the upstairs rooms are available on a tablet. Some steps into and out of the garden and uneven surfaces. Braille & large print guides are available from house entrance. Tactile tour available also. Please ask at house front door if you would like this. Ramp available for shop entrance. Ear defenders are available if you'd like to use them.
- Accessible toilet
Located in the Visitor Car Park (radar key available from Visitor Reception).
- Braille (guide or menu)
Braille guides are available at the House upon request. Braille copies of Beatrix's tales are located in the Visitor Reception.
- Designated parking
Due to the nature of the site, accessible parking is located at the farmhouse. Please ask at Visitor Reception for details.
- Drop-off point
Due to the nature of the site, accessible drop off point is located at the farmhouse. Please ask at Visitor Reception for details.
- Induction loop
At till points inside Visitor Reception and the Shop.
- Narrow corridors
- Seating available
Window seats available inside Hill Top. Benches and accessible picnic available in the orchard.
- Steps/uneven terrain
Four steps up to enter the site. Cobbled path up to Hill Top from the site entrance. Alternative smooth path available to use. Stairs to the upper level of Hill Top.
- Wheelchairs available
All terrain wheelchair available at Visitor Reception.
- On foot
- There is an off-road path from the Windermere car ferry (2 miles), marked along the route. There is also a route (mostly off-road) from Hawkshead (2 miles). No need to prebook tickets if arriving to Hill Top on foot.
- Cycling
- Bike racks are available in the car park. No need to prebook tickets if arriving to Hill Top by bike.
- By bus
- There is no direct bus route to Hill Top.
- By train
- The nearest train station is in Windermere, 4½ miles away via vehicle ferry.
- Windermere Lake Cruise Boat
- SEASONAL: Windermere Lake Cruises cross lake shuttle from Bowness to Ash Landing. Hill Top is 2 miles from the jetty.
- By ferry
- Ferry that carries cars, bicycles and foot passengers across Windermere lake from Ferry Nab in Bowness to Ferry House. The journey takes around 10 minutes, one way. The ferry can carry up to 18 cars and over 100 passengers.
- By road
- Take the B5286 and B5285 from Ambleside (6 miles), or the B5285 from Coniston (7 miles).Parking: You must pre-book your admission ticket if arriving by car. The car park is small with limited capacity. It has a two hour maximum stay. Car park closed at 5.30pm. Not suitable for camper vans/mobile homes.
Planning your visit
Booking your visit
If you are travelling here by car you will need to book in advance to guarantee a parking space. Read this article to find out everything you need to know if you are planning a visit to Hill Top,
Access at Hill Top
We want to make sure that Hill Top is equally accessible for all visitors and are taking taken steps to ensure that as many people as possible can experience Hill Top’s story.
Visiting Hill Top with your dog
Find out which areas of Hill Top you can explore with your dog. Hill Top is a one pawprint rated place.
Watch Hill Top on Hidden Treasures of the National Trust
See behind the scenes at Beatrix Potter’s Hill Top, with BBC2's Hidden Treasures of the National Trust on BBC iPlayer.
Highlights
House
Beatrix Potter's farmhouse retreat: the inspiration for her little books. Full of her favourite things, it was the place that inspired her stories and her love for the Lake District.
Garden
Informal flower beds planted in the English cottage-garden style, with flowers and vegetables. Look out for scenes from Beatrix Potter's little white books.
JOEY's Café (independently run)
Cosy coffee cabin in Beatrix Potter’s orchard, serving baked goods, savoury snacks, locally roasted coffee, teas and hot chocolate.
Shop
A small treasure trove of unique products. Every penny that you spend in our shop helps us to look after Hill Top for everyone, for ever.
Second Hand Book-nook
Pre-loved hardbacks, paperbacks, magazines and children's books for sale in the Ticket Office Second-Hand Book-nook. All money raised goes directly back into looking after Hill Top.
Hill Top Herdwicks*
The Dixons, who have farmed at Hill Top for thirty-five years, run farm tours on selected dates, offering a rare opportunity to catch a glimpse of the working Lakeland farm as it is today. *This event is run externally by our tenant farmers but can be booked at the Hill Top visitor reception.
Tabitha Twitchit's Bookshop
Tabitha Twitchit’s Bookshop can be found in the nearby village of Hawkshead. This standalone 2nd-hand bookshop occupies the former Beatrix Potter Gallery. This historic building begins a new chapter celebrating stories, community, and the enduring legacy of Beatrix Potter.
Things to see and do
Beatrix Potter's Moss Eccles Tarn walk
Discover one of Beatrix Potter's favourite places, Moss Eccles Tarn, in the Lake District, Cumbria that inspired her writing.
Things to do in Hill Top house
See Beatrix Potter’s house as she wanted you to see it. It’s filled with her belongings and you can match up illustrations from her books with scenes there today.
Things to do in Hill Top garden
Discover Beatrix Potter's garden, restored to how it was in her time, with the carefully tended vegetable plot and views of the pretty cottage garden from the famous path.
Cracking Beatrix’s Coded-Writing
From ages 15 to 30, Beatrix Potter kept coded journals, using an invented coded cypher system. Now, on display for the very first time at Hill Top are several pieces of newly transcribed code-writing.
Watch Hill Top on Hidden Treasures of the National Trust
See behind the scenes at Beatrix Potter’s Hill Top, with BBC2's Hidden Treasures of the National Trust on BBC iPlayer.
Tabitha Twitchit's Bookshop
Step inside the charming world of Tabitha Twitchit's second-hand bookshop in Hawkshead, where every shelf holds a story. Come in and wander round, browse and lose yourself in the quiet magic of well-loved pages and forgotten treasures. Whether you're hunting for a childhood favourite, a holiday read, or simply something unexpected, you'll find it nestled among the nooks and crannies of this cosy literary haven. It's the kind of place you’ll want to return to again and again.
Spotlight events
Mischief in Miniature
The Tale of Two Bad Mice comes to life at Hill Top, with little needle-felted mice in various mischievous scenes around the property for you to try and spot.
Pets to Page: The Tale of Two Bad Mice
This display explores how Beatrix drew inspiration for her tales from the pets and people in her life and celebrates the layers of imagination within this special story.
Shopping
Shopping at Hill Top
The Hill Top shop has a variety of gifts inspired by Beatrix Potter and her life in the Lake District.
Places to stay
Tanner Brow
Sitting on the western shore of Lake Windermere, this first floor apartment is a cosy retreat.
High Strawberry Gardens
A simple lakeside retreat for an uplugged holiday, with a jetty to launch your canoe or kayak in Windermere.
Low Strawberry Gardens
A simple lakeside retreat for an uplugged holiday, with a jetty to launch your canoe or kayak into Windermere.
Trees
A 1930s log and stone cabin high above Lake Windermere with a sun terrace and great views.
Rose Castle Cottage
A two-bedroom cottage just above Tarn Hows with heaps of character in the heart of the Lakes.
Low Wray Campsite
By Windermere, England’s largest lake, surrounded by things to do and places to visit.
The Summer House
A cosy house in the old kitchen garden of Wray Castle with views of stunning scenery all around.
Upcoming events
Sorry, there are no upcoming events at this place
About Hill Top and Hawkshead
Immerse yourself in the tale of Beatrix Potter by visiting Hill Top. Full of her favourite things, it was the place that inspired her stories and her love for the Lake District.
The lovely cottage garden is a haphazard mix of flowers, herbs, fruit and vegetables. Make your way up the garden path to the front door and see for yourself why Beatrix loved this place. Bought in 1905 with proceeds from her first book, the Tale of Peter Rabbit, she used Hill Top itself and the surrounding countryside as inspiration for many of her subsequent books
Pre‑booking is required for everyone, including National Trust members. Choose an arrival timeslot using our online booking system.
Tickets can be booked up to two weeks in advance and right up to a few minutes before each slot.
Hill Top is a traditional Lake District cottage with very limited parking, so we’re unable to accommodate campervans or motorhomes.
History
Beatrix Potter
Discover how Beatrix Potter’s Victorian upbringing and fascination with animals culminated in a successful career as an author and illustrator and a passion for conservation.
The stories behind the works of Beatrix Potter
Explore the stories behind the illustrations, sketches and letters of this legendary author, preserved by the National Trust at her former home in the Lake District.
The Royal Oak Foundation Conservation Studio
The Royal Oak Foundation Conservation Studio helps care for a large number of objects from National Trust properties across the country. See The Conservation Studio on BBC Two’s Hidden Treasures of the National Trust
Literary podcasts
Discover the literary connections to some of the special places in our care
Support us
Volunteer with us
Search for live volunteering opportunities, or register your interest with Hill Top.
