Not all that long ago, a break in the Lake District meant days spent gasping at the romantic wonder of nature in all its prom-night beauty - daffodils, sunsets, mountains, lakes – then nights in a rather basic B&B or some parochial hotel where an old bore monopolised the fire with tales of his latest battle with Scafell Pike while a bloke in a cable-knit jumper pulled weedy beer into tankards.

Fortunately, things change. Lakeland has embraced its position as England’s New Zealand and pulled its knee-high, natural-fibre walking socks up accordingly.

A bunch of posh B&Bs, boutique guesthouses and restaurants with (very nice) rooms have opened recently, providing sustenance and accommodation on a par with anywhere else in the country. Here are some of our favourites, all with new reasons to stay in 2009.

Unless stated, all prices are per night for an ensuite room, B&B

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1 NO 43 Arnside

Yes, they’ve forgotten to come up with a snappy name for this Victorian town house, which opened as a boutique guesthouse last year, but if you had knockout views over the Kent estuary to the Lakeland Fells, you’d be distracted too. The village of Arnside is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and is unusually calm, even for Cumbria - and No 43’s five individually turned-out rooms, with clean, simple lines, do nothing to jar you from your reverie.

Our favourite is room two, with a double-ended bath under a large feature window where you can spot birds - bathing or otherwise - out on the estuary. There’s a new terrace out the front for kicking back, but if you’ve still got the energy for a night out, they’ll leave a midnight-feast tray in your room for your return. From £110, or three nights for £231; 01524 762761, no43.org.uk

2 THE SUN INN Kirkby Lonsdale

Officially in Cumbria, but just as close to the Yorkshire Dales, the Sun Inn is an excellent stopping-off point before you launch yourself into the Lakes. The owners, Mark and Lucy Fuller, have spent three years upgrading every last scrap of this 17th-century building, and have just finished installing a £120,000 kitchen. (Imagine the size of the dishwasher.)

Upstairs, there are 11 rooms, all with WiFi and bespoke tables, bed-heads and other furniture made by Lucy’s father. From £90; 015242 71965, sun-inn.info . Midweek offer: up to 40% off, depending on length of stay, until April (not including Valentine’s or Easter)

3 THE PUNCHBOWL Crosthwaite

This place is, frankly, a big fat show-off. Then again, so would you be if you had just been anointed Pub of the Year by the Michelin Pub Guide 2009; had an award-winning restaurant serving local seasonal produce; offered brand-new in-room massage, facial, pedicure and manicure treatments; and topped it all off with bedrooms that make you want to round up the local frogs and kiss them all, individually, just in case one happens to turn into something, or someone, more exciting.

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