Windermere Marina Village officially re-opens in July in time for the start of the school summer holidays – following a £3 million improvements programme.

The Marina – the biggest on England’s longest lake – welcomes over 11,000 guests every year to Bowness.

Bookings for the vital summer tourism season are growing steadily again and there are hopes the grand re-opening will help boost the resort’s tourism.

On Saturday July 10th, the Marina will formally unveil the fruits of its eight-month-long refurbishment; the most comprehensive since it was built and opened in 1984.

Dozens of dignitaries, guests and boat owners will meet for a champagne reception with Managing Director Jason Dearden. They will be given an exclusive chance to go out for a leisure cruise on the lake onboard a state-of-the-art 46ft motor yacht – the F46 Flybridge. The luxury yacht is being toured around Marinas across the country by its owners Sealine, but Windermere Marina Village is its only stop in the whole of the North for boat owners to catch a glimpse.

They will also be shown around the Marina’s 29 self-catering cottages and 35 luxury Windermere apartments surrounding the water’s edge which have all been totally transformed to four-and-five star standards with new flooring, kitchens, bathrooms, carpets, bedroom furniture, bedding as well as painting and decoration.

Windermere mayor Bill Smith will open the event following a visit earlier in the week from Westmorland and Lonsdale MP Tim Farron.

The Marina on a sheltered inlet of the lake, has been a hive of activity for the last six month as it works to re-open for business.

Holidaymakers rely on the Marina to let out its cottages and apartments to stay in the area. As the biggest inland Marina in the north, many guests use local restaurants, pubs, cinemas, shops, cafes, visitor attractions, museums, boat yards, newsagents and garages – making the Marina a significant contributor to the economy of Bowness and Windermere.

On the Marina itself, there has been extensive work to totally modernise and replace the jetties which allow access to the boats.

Over 400 boat owners use the Marina as a vital place on Lake Windermere to secure and moor their luxury fleet of motor or sail powered cruisers, when they’re not out cruising on the water.

Many of the boat owners are people who live in the Lake District and Cumbria and enjoy sailing, but others come from as far afield as Manchester, Cheshire, Newcastle and Glasgow.

It is the first completed phase of a much wider package of investment at the Marina which will eventually see new reception areas, a brand-new restaurant, swimming pool and new offices for the company’s 55 staff.

The business is also greener than before after upgrading its roof and wall insulation and making the lay-outs more contemporary and holiday-friendly.

Where possible, the company has spread the benefit of the upgrade by using local businesses such as decorators, skip companies and kitchen refurbishers. One business to benefit from the refurb includes Windermere-based Lakeland Fells Furniture Limited, which designs and restores custom-made furniture.

Jason Dearden, Managing Director of Windermere Marina Village, said: “I would like to thank our staff, visitors and boat owners for the patience they have shown over the last few months. I would like to reassure them that Windermere Marina Village is now back in action and open for business this summer.”

“I am delighted we have all worked hard to meet our deadline because the following few months are the most important of the tourism year. Windermere Marina Village re-opening is good news for us, good news for our guests, and good news for the wider Bowness economy.”

Other businesses which helped in the improvements include Lakeland Gardeners who worked on landscapes; Home Designs in Kendal supplying beds; Webbs Kitchens in Kendal; Kendal Refrigeration Services for air conditioning; Barrow-based Optech Fibres; Sedbergh’s Marthwaite Joinery; South Lakes Painting and Decorating, and Kendal’s Highgate Carpets for the flooring in bathrooms and kitchens.

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For more information, please contact Jason Dearden, or Tracii Monet at Windermere Marina Village on 015394 46551, or email tracii.monet@wmv.co.uk

Windermere Marina Village is the Lake District’s premier Inland Marina and Holiday Resort. Find out more at www.wmv.co.uk

Windermere Marina Village, The Marina, Bowness On Windermere
Windermere, Cumbria, LA23 3JQ, 015394 46551, info@wmv.co.uk