Find out what inspired Wordsworth and Coleridge in the Lake District National Park

The Lake District is in the northwestern country of Cumbria and fulfills all your chocolate box fantasies of England - stone cottages, picturesque villages, green hills, lovely lakes, serious mountains, glacial valleys and meadows hemmed in by dry-stone walls.

You could have a great time here viewing it all from behind the window of a bus, browsing the souvenir shops of Windermere, Kendal and Bowness or scoffing sweets at the Grasmere Gingerbread Shop.

But to truly appreciate what inspired literary greats like Wordsworth and Coleridge, you'll need to strap on your walking boots and explore the rugged Lake District National Park. This is England's largest national park with 64 lakes and 200 mountains (of which Scafell Pike is the highest in the country), a playground for hill walkers, cyclists, abseilers, windsurfers and paragliders. Ambelside, Grasmere and Keswick make good bases for hiking expeditions.

The Lake District is also the wettest part of the country - pack your waterproofs and let someone know where you're going if you plan to embark on ambitious hikes.