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Guides
What's on
Where to go
See all

Allan Bank

Alex Saint

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Allan Bank

Allan Bank, Grasmere, LA22 9QB
+441539435143
Website
  • Monday10:00am - 5:00pm
  • Tuesday10:00am - 5:00pm
  • Wednesday10:00am - 5:00pm
  • Thursday10:00am - 5:00pm
  • Friday10:00am - 5:00pm
  • Saturday10:00am - 5:00pm
  • Sunday10:00am - 5:00pm

Always double check opening hours with the venue before making a special visit.

Visit now
Allan Bank, Grasmere, image courtesy of Visit Cumbria
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Allan Bank is a curious property. It was built in the very early 1800s to the initial infuriation of William Wordsworth who, from across the vale in Dove Cottage, watched it rise like a blot on the landscape. But the position of the house and its uninterrupted view across Grasmere proved beguiling and, once it was built, he and his young family promptly moved in, declaring it ‘the loveliest spot that man hath ever found’. We are inclined to agree with him, as did his contemporaries who frequently came to stay and party with the Wordsworths  – and more recently Canon Rawnsley, founder of the National Trust who bequeathed it to the Trust.

The historic villa combines a small, informal art gallery with a giant indoor mural space – a place for artists to explore nature, with plenty of space to sit and enjoy the views. A blank canvas of a house in which to play, create, paint and write (on the walls if you like) – or to simply sit by the fire and chat with friends. It really does feel like a living home and we love it.

What's on near Allan Bank

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LiteratureLancashire
Litfest 2026

One of the oldest literature festivals in the country, Litfest returns to Lancaster with a programme focused on the rights of the natural world.

From £3.00
Afternoon Tea at Blackpool Tower Ballroom
Until
Food and DrinkBlackpool
Afternoon Tea at Blackpool Tower Ballroom

Step into the majestic Blackpool Tower Ballroom for an experience like no other. With stunning architecture, live music and treats galore, Afternoon Tea here is highly recommended.

From £60.00
Saltaire Brewery - 58
Until
TourSaltaire
Saltaire Brewery Tour

The guided tour offers a behind-the-scenes look at the brewhouse and state-of-the-art packaging plant, giving visitors a full sense of what “real Yorkshire beer” means today.

From £15.00
See all events

Where to go near Allan Bank

Cumbria
Shop
Sam Read Bookseller

Award-winning small bookshop in the Lake District. Est. by Sam Read in 1887. Run by Will Smith and Polly Atkin.

Forest Side Restaurant
Cumbria
Restaurant
Forest Side Restaurant

We love the fantastic Forest Side Restaurant. Attached to the historic Forest Side Hotel in Grasmere, this is one of the best places to eat in Cumbria.

Dove Cottage, Grasmere, image courtesy of venue
Cumbria
Museum
Dove Cottage

Dove Cottage is where William Wordsworth lived and wrote, and where the Wordsworth Trust continues that work today with poets in residence and public programmes.

Cumbria
Museum
Wordsworth Grasmere

From book launches to writing groups to poetry nights, there’s always something going on at Wordsworth Grasmere.

Cumbria
Museum
The Wordsworth Museum

Next door to Dove Cottage, Wordsworth’s first family home, is the Wordsworth Museum, which houses an unsurpassed collection of the Wordsworths’ letters, journals and poems.

The Merzbarn today, courtesy Littoral Arts Trust
Cumbria
Gallery
Kurt Schwitters’ Merzbarn

Tucked away in a remote corner of the Lake District is Kurt Schwitter’s Merzbarn, an artistic epitaph to the avant garde ‘godfather of modern art’.

The Armitt Museum
Cumbria
Gallery
The Armitt Museum

Full of interesting and unusual objects, The Armitt is a museum that shares the history and heritage of Ambleside and its people.

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Allan Bank, Grasmere, image courtesy of Visit Cumbria
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Emily Lloyd-Saini as Grace in Space and Harrie Hayes as Lieutenant Strong in Horrible Science
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A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night
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There's no shortage of great films out at the moment, whether you're looking for the latest blockbuster, that hot arthouse flick fresh from Cannes or a cosy classic.