I have been pretty open to date about the highs and lows of business and how stress can sometimes creep into the entrepreneurial journey if we don’t keep a close eye on our wellbeing. When an opportunity to visit the tranquillity of The Lake District and try out a brand new luxury B and B came up, it was bit of a no-brainer. It was a wonderful weekend and I am happy to share the experience with you.

I took just one day off from The Link App (if you don’t count being on my emails constantly) and drove over 200miles to ‘The Lakes’. It took almost ten hours, which was unusually long and may be the subject of a much less exciting blog. Once there, totally worth it for the dramatic change of pace. I live in London so I don’t drive too many places the prospect of a road trip is even more exciting. We arrived at The Malabar at about 6pm on Friday evening. The Malabar luxury B&B is situated on the edge of the Lake District and the Yorkshire Dales at the foot of the Howgill Fells. Run by first-time B&B owners, Fiona and Graham Lappin, The Malabar has six indulgent bedrooms including three suites – all with large designer bathrooms. Located just two miles from the historic market town of Sedbergh, The Malabar is housed in an 18th century bank barn, which still has many original features. We were warmly greeted by the owners upon arrival- they treat all their guests to afternoon tea. A choice of ten loose-leaf teas and delicious homemade pastries. The scones were my favourite and very welcome after a long journey!

We stayed in one of their suites (Camellia). It was spacious, designed to a high specification and bursting with character- exactly what we wanted. My favourite things about it were the HUGE standalone bath, the size of the bed and the patio doors out to the courtyard. The view from the courtyard was simple but stunning all in one.

On the Friday we went into the town of Sedbergh and ate at a local café called the Three Hares. It was simple in design but the proprietors were friendly and knowledgable about the accompanying wine. When I talk about countryside, I really mean remote- literally no pavement between the hotel and town so a taxi was compulsory but reasonably priced.

Saturday morning and after a lazy start we were treated to a feast of a breakfast. I had hot lemon water, green tea, porriegde and fruit. Quite similar to what I would have at home, just way nicer and served outside with a view. The freshair was a tonic.

The Saturday we went to Cautley Spout. Now I really loved this day out. We hardly saw anyone on the walk to the top. It was fitness (which you know I love) but not too intense. The views on the way up were a far cry from my usual city scene and the utter peace when we reached the top of the waterfall we perfect. Very romantic. We had a brief paddle in the rockpools up there before making our way down.

On the way to Windermere, we stopped of at a café. It was called Plumgarths Farm Shop and Café. I highly recommended the cheesecake, although the service left something to be desired.

The reason I was in The Lakes was to celebrate my grandfathers annual golf tournemant with the rest of the Riley family. Family is so important and when I am usually running around at a million miles per hour, it was nice to spend this more lesuiruly time with them. They played at Windemere golf club. I can play but chose not to hold them up this time- its been a while as I am too busy to play regularly. We ate as a family and checked out a few pubs on the edge of Lake Windermere. The lake itself I have visited many times as a child, its a spectacular site to behold but too busy to be ideal.

Our stay at The Malabar was truly lovely and I would definitely recommend a weekend away in The Lakes- thank you to the Malabar for having us. I have even done a little vlog about my time there which shows off the rooms really well- take a look here:

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