Hi Everyone,
One place that I was so excited to visit during my Lake District getaway was Hill Top, the home of Beatrix Potter, the author of Peter Rabbit, and today it's a National Trust site. I enjoyed Peter Rabbit when I was little and my children are enjoying her stories as well, especially after our visit.
Hill Top is located near Sawrey, Ambleside in Cumbria, it's a really small village but it really is a magical place. The parking is a nightmare in this village as you can imagine, the National Trust worked on a booking in advance for their car park which is the only car park in the village. They advise if you do need to park to park on side streets or in laybys. There is a playground further down the road, that's where we parked, but there were only 3 spaces, it would be a struggle during summer holidays to find anywhere.
One thing to note if you are wanting to visit is that where you purchase the tickets for Hill Top is located next to the car park. The entrance to Hill Top is located at the edge of town but it's only a short walk from the ticket office. Hill Top is a time capsule of Beatrix Potter's life, the house is full of all the original furniture that Beatrix Potter would of used as well as original pieces of writing.
For anyone who doesn't know who Beatrix Potter is, she is a famous British author and Illustrator, famously known for Peter Rabbit as well as her other short stories. Peter Rabbit was her first commercially published work in 1902 and have sold more than 250 million copies. She was also an entrepreneur, even in character merchandising and in 1903, Peter Rabbit was the first fictional character to be made into a patented stuffed toy, making him the oldest licensed character. Did anyone know this? Because I didn't!
Beatrix Potter bought Hill Top house and its 34-acre working farm in 1905 as her home away from London and her artistic retreat. She left the house to the National Trust upon her death in 1943. To this day it is still a working farm and her house has so many visitors everyday.
I can't explain how magical walking around the house felt, especially with all her little books she had written dotted around the bay window seats. It allowed us to read the book while looking out into the garden and fields that inspired Beatrix.
Beatrix Potter's garden is full of flowers, herbs, fruit and vegetables. If you have read the books you'll recognise the rhubarb patch where Jemima Puddle-Duck laid her egg, and the garden where Tom Kitten and his sisters played. Because I read the books, I felt like I was part of her book just walking around her garden while looking back at the house.
The gift shop was in a converted shed looking building but it had lots of different types of gifts to purchase. There was a great range of Beatrix Potter soft toys, books and other lovely gifts and it was really busy, everyone wanted to take a piece of Beatrix's writing home with them.
This is one of those places that I could visit over and over again and still be inspired with every visit. Have you been? If so, what did you think of it?
Until next time, stay tuned.