Kendal is known to many as the Southern Gateway to the beautiful Lake District but, this is not all it is famous for. You will discover on coach trips to Kendal that it has a plethora of historical buildings and bridges with rows of houses that date back to the early 1600s to the present day. Each house is made from the local grey limestone and that is how Kendal got the name ‘Auld Grey Town’.
Its most famous export is the Kendal Mint Cake that was designed (by accident) by Joseph Wiper and was used by many Everest explorers when they needed that quick energy fix! Its traditional trade was wool and did you know that the town has more pubs in a square mile than any other part of the UK – well it does!
The town is also a haven for shoppers with not one but FIVE shopping arcades to choose from: K Village, the Westmorland Shopping Centre, Blackhall Yard, The Elephant Yard and Wainwright’s Yard. For that history fix, why not join day trips by coach to visit Castle Howe or Kendal Castle to find out more about this delightful place.
Kendal also has literary roots as the author John Cunliffe lived here for six years where he wrote the children’s books ‘Postman Pat’ and ‘Rosie & Jim’. The village of ‘Greendale’ on which ‘Postman Pat’ is set is actually based on Longsleddale near Kendal. Due the success of the TV series, John Cunliffe became quite the celebrity even having a room named after him in the Kendal Museum of Lakeland Life. Go on coach trips to Kendal today and see if you can spot Pat’s famous black & white cat!