Ambleside Manor Rothay Road Ambleside - 27th - 31st October 2016

Ambleside Manor is a lovely vegetarian Victorian Country guest house, set in two acres of grounds, ideally situated within easy walking distance of Ambleside town centre.

Its location ensures it is quiet and peaceful, even though the busy main road runs right past the front gate, but set back from the road in large gardens, there is no traffic noise.

I booked their three night break, including breakfast with dinner one night at each of its sister venues Zefferellis and Fellinis and added on a Sunday night as an extra.

The first thing we came across, as we got out the car was a small deer, roaming in the undergrowth, who apparently visits with his mum, but on this occasion, was alone.   He did not appear too perturbed by humans and even posed for the camera.

Our room for the first three nights was room seven, a lovely airy room, with a small seating area, plenty of storage space, tea and coffee facilities, TV and good sized bathroom.   

There is a fridge where soya and dairy milks were available on the landing, along with a guest computer and free Wi-Fi.   Our booking confirmed they were happy to provide coconut milk, but I am in the habit of taking my own, so did so on this occasion, along with some soya free margarine.   I left large notes on both items, as other guests may think they were for general use and thankfully, they worked.

Breakfast is served in the magnificent dining room, with its marble fireplace, wood panelling, high ceilings and decorative windows, it is a lovely room to dine and start the day.

To start is a buffet breakfast including fresh fruit, fruit salad, mixed berries, cereals, dried fruits, fruit juices, fruit smoothies, soya yogurt and milk, with clearly marked vegan options.

A full breakfast is available, but I only had grilled tomatoes and fried mushrooms, as my allergies meant I had to miss out on the baked beans and what I think were Linda McCartney vegan sausages.   I do think a vegan substitute for eggs would be a nice idea, vegan omelette made with chickpea flour (my obvious choice) or scrambled tofu, to make for a full vegan breakfast option.   I had a slight issue as to whether the bread (homemade at Zefferellis) contained soya, I asked three different members of staff on three different days and was non the wiser, so bought some bagels.

Our last night involved moving to room ten, which I thought was even nicer than room seven, with views over the gardens and very well presented.   There were miniature Neal's Yard products in both bathrooms, but I was unable to clarify if they were vegan or not on Neal's Yard's website, so my husband used them.

Our interactions with every member of staff was excellent, what a friendly happy team, from the warm welcome off Manager Christine, the waiting staff at breakfast and our chat with owner Dorothy, all ensured we had a relaxing stay.   We enjoyed our visit so much, we booked another four night break, in room ten, for early 2017 and Ambleside Manor will be our choice of place to stay whenever in Ambleside.

I cannot finish my review and not mention meeting up with Emma aka Cannyfood, husband Raf and daughter Emily.   Emma and I follow each other on Twitter and by a huge coincidence, they were staying at Ambleside Manor as part of a celebratory weekend for Raf's birthday.   It was lovely to meet over a coffee and talk about all things vegan and if ever in Manchester Cannyfood, give us a shout.