Keswick is small, walkable and has a lake at the bottom of the road, which makes it one of the easier Lake District towns to do with a six and a seven year old. Here's what I'd actually book, what I'd skip, and what to do when it chucks it down.
The best things to do in Keswick with kids are a Keswick Launch trip on Derwentwater (children 5 to 15 are £9 return), the Derwent Pencil Museum and crazy golf at Hope Park. Castlerigg Stone Circle is free, and the Puzzling Place and Keswick Museum are your wet-day backups. Keswick is compact enough to do most of this on foot from one car park.
Right, the honest bit first. Keswick is busy. On a dry Saturday in August the pavements are all pushchairs, dogs and people in walking boots who have clearly never been near a proper hill. But it's also one of the best places in Cumbria for things to do in Keswick with kids, because almost everything is within a ten minute stroll of the lake and you're never more than a few hundred yards from a toilet or a chip shop. Two small children who have hit the wall at half two can be fed and sat down without a route march.
I live in Carlisle, so Keswick is our 'let's do the Lakes properly' town, about 45 minutes down the A66 on a good day. I've built this around what's actually on the official websites, what it costs at the time of writing, and how it fits children of about six and seven, who are loud, hungry and allergic to walking uphill. Prices change, so use the links.
Park once and don't move the car. Keswick Rugby Club on Crow Park Road has around 200 spaces according to the Keswick tourism site, and it's a short walk to the lake and the boats. Do the lake first while the children still have energy, then the town, then whatever's left.
This is the one I'd do even if it rained a bit. The Launch runs round Derwentwater and stops at seven landing stages (Keswick, Ashness Gate, Lodore, High Brandelhow, Low Brandelhow, Hawes End and Nichol End), so you can hop off, have a wander, and catch the next one. Children love a boat. Adults love not driving.
At the time of writing a round trip is £16 for adults, £9 for children aged 5 to 15, and £41.50 for a family ticket (two adults and three children). Under 5s go free. Dogs are welcome and free, which is unusually generous. The summer timetable runs from 21 March to 8 November 2026, and the website flags 'limited launch service' on some days, so look before you set off.
One thing to know if you've got a pushchair: the official FAQ says a ramp gets you to Pier One, but boarding a launch needs assistance, so it's doable but not slick.
Keswick has a pencil museum. Yes. It's better than that sounds, and I say that as somebody who expected to be cynical. There's a giant pencil, the world's longest colour pencil (their claim), and a display about the escape pencils used by RAF pilots in the Second World War. That's proper sneaky history for a seven year old.
There's a Kids Art Studio and the site lists creative workshops, and the riverside café looks out towards Catbells. It's open 9.30am to 4.30pm daily on their site, children under 16 are £3.50 and under 5s are free. I couldn't confirm the adult price, so check it before you go. Dogs are welcome throughout.
My opinion: it's an hour, maybe ninety minutes if the art studio grabs them. It's a brilliant rain filler but you wouldn't drive across the county for it.
Hope Park sits on Lake Road, opposite the Lakeside car park and Theatre by the Lake, on the way to the water. It has 18 hole crazy golf, a 9 hole pitch and putt, a putting green, petanque, a bird hide and woodland walks. The bit my lot would fight over is the remote control boats, which run round a mini replica of Derwentwater with two islands and jetties.
The Keswick tourism page lists crazy golf at £4.20 a head, pitch and putt at £5, putting at £3.25 and the boats at £1 a go. Sums up fast with a family of four, so I'd pick one game and a cake. Cafe Hope is open all year and seats 90.
A warning: the opening times on the park's own site and on the tourism page don't quite agree, so a quick check before you arrive saves a grumpy walk.
Around 30 minutes' walk from the middle of Keswick, or a short drive, is a ring of standing stones on a field with mountains all the way round. English Heritage looks after it, it's free, and you can turn up any reasonable time in daylight. Children can run round and count the stones (they'll get different numbers, this is how arguments start).
The ground is muddy and can be slippery, so wellies or grippy shoes, and the site is grazed by sheep, so dogs stay on leads. Parking is limited. It's a 20 minute stop, not a day out, but the views towards Helvellyn and High Seat do most of the work for you.
On Station Road (CA12 4NF), inside Fitz Park. It's open daily 10am to 4pm, last admission 3.30pm, and covers local geology, Lakeland life, the Keswick School of Industrial Arts and the literary history. It also has a café and a family programme through the year.
It's a small museum, so think of it as an hour with a snack at the end. Fitz Park around it has play areas, and the tourism site mentions a free BMX track there, so you can let scooters off the leash before or after.
Museum Square, Keswick CA12 5DZ. It's optical illusions, rooms that mess with your sense of height, that kind of thing, and their info page says it takes about 45 minutes. Their site gives adults £4.75, children (16 and under) £4.25 and a family of four £16, though prices tend to drift upwards so treat that as a guide.
The catch is it's on the first floor with a flight of stairs and no lift, which matters if you've got a buggy or a grandparent with a bad hip. Well behaved dogs on short leads get in free. Booking isn't needed outside school holidays.
Catbells is the famous one. The Keswick tourism route is 3.5 miles (5.7 km), takes about 3 hours plus stops, and is rated moderate with a short steep section and some minor scrambling. That's not a toddler walk, and I'd only take it with children who like using their hands on rocks. The clever bit is to take the Keswick Launch to Hawes End landing stage and start there, which saves the road walk and gets the boat trip in as a bonus. The 77A bus, running from Easter to October, also goes to the start. Check the weather and the boat timetable, because a limited launch service ruins this plan quite fast.
About 3 miles from Keswick on the B5292, run by Forestry England. There's adventure play, walking and cycling, and the longest purpose-built mountain bike trails in the Lake District. Cafe Ambio does food, open 9.30am to 4pm on weekdays and to 4.30pm at weekends.
Parking is the sting. The first 20 minutes are free, then £2.90 for the first hour, 70p per 15 minutes after that, and a £14 all-day maximum, so a long day costs more than you might expect. Members park free. The Keswick tourism site also lists Go Ape at Whinlatter, which I couldn't verify on the Forestry England page, so check it separately.
It rains. Nobody's told the Lake District otherwise. Your indoor list is short but good: the Pencil Museum, the Puzzling Place, Keswick Museum, and the Alhambra Cinema (listed by Keswick tourism as a film venue). Theatre by the Lake on Lakeside (CA12 5DJ) also runs family shows alongside its main programme, so if there's one on when you visit it's a solid afternoon out. The Launch itself will still run in light rain, and children in waterproofs on a boat are perfectly happy, whatever the adults think.
Rain plan rule: book nothing for the morning, decide at breakfast, and keep a spare pair of socks in the car. That's the whole strategy.
I'll be straight: I've only checked a handful of places online for this piece, so I'm not going to hand you a top ten I can't stand behind. Places I can tell you about from the official sites are Cafe Hope in Hope Park (breakfast, lunch, cream teas, open all year), the café at the Pencil Museum with its view of Catbells, Cafe Ambio at Whinlatter and the café at Keswick Museum. For a treat, Ye Olde Friars in Market Square has been selling chocolate since 1927, according to the Keswick tourism site. Bribes work better in a chocolate shop than in a car park.
Go early, or go late. Weekends and school holidays are the crunch. If you're staying in Carlisle, Penrith or Cockermouth, remember there's a bus, and the 77A helps with the Catbells end of the lake between Easter and October. The rugby club car park is the sensible starting point, and the Lakeside car park near Hope Park and the theatre is handy for the afternoon stuff.
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A Keswick Launch trip on Derwentwater, the Derwent Pencil Museum, crazy golf and remote control boats at Hope Park, and Castlerigg Stone Circle, which is free. The Puzzling Place and Keswick Museum are good for rain.
The website lists a round-trip family ticket (two adults and three children) at £41.50, with adults £16 and children aged 5 to 15 at £9. Under 5s are free. Check the fares page for current prices.
Yes. The town is compact, the lakeside is flat, Hope Park is easy with a buggy, and under 5s go free on the Launch and at the Pencil Museum. Catbells and Castlerigg are less buggy-friendly.
Yes, well behaved dogs are welcome and free of charge on the lake cruises, according to the Keswick Launch FAQ. Dogs are also allowed in the Pencil Museum and, on short leads, in the Puzzling Place.
The Derwent Pencil Museum, the Puzzling Place, Keswick Museum and the Alhambra Cinema, plus family shows at Theatre by the Lake when they are on.
It is rated moderate with a steep section and minor scrambling, about 3.5 miles and 3 hours. It suits confident older children more than under-fives. Using the Launch to Hawes End makes it easier.
Facts checked against these pages on Tuesday 29 September 2026. Opening times and prices change, so confirm with the venue.
