ONE of the Lakes District’s best known vegetarian country house hotels and restaurants is in line for a major upgrade following a change of ownership.
Lancrigg Vegetarian Country House Hotel at Grasmere has been sold to the Kendal-based Urban Group for an undisclosed sum.
The property had been advertised for an asking price of £295,000 by the specialist hotels and licensed property division of real estate advisor Colliers International.
The previous owners, Robert and Janet Whittington, operated the business for 36 years before retiring and selling the lease.
Urban Group says it plans a “significant upgrade” at the end of the 2016 holiday season.
Lancrigg is a Grade II-listed building with 11 bedrooms, set in 27 acres of gardens and grounds.
Its restaurant is renowned for vegetarian and gluten-free cooking.
The hotel dates back to the 19th century and was visited regularly by the romantic poets such as Wordsworth, DeQuincy and Coleridge, and also has links with Charles Dickens, Florence Nightingale and Charles Darwin.
Haydn Spedding, associate director, hotels and licensed property at Colliers, said: “The sale of Lancrigg Vegetarian Country House Hotel reflects increased deal activity in the hospitality industry throughout the Lake District, Cumbria and wider northern region, and is just one of a number of recent sales achieved by Colliers International.”
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