Storrs Hall has the position every other venue on Windermere would quietly like to have. It is a listed Georgian mansion standing on its own stretch of lake shore just south of Bowness, with lawns that run down to the water, woodland walks behind, a temple out at the water’s edge and a jetty from which you can take a private cruise on the lake between the ceremony and dinner. Inside it is all proper Georgian bones: a reception hall lit by a stained-glass rotunda, a drawing room with huge windows onto the lake, and the sort of late-afternoon light photographers talk about afterwards.
Weddings here are built for around 80, which is the size at which a country house feels full rather than echoing. Ceremonies take place in the Georgian Drawing Room, in the Garden Pavilion, or out on the lakeside lawns, all of them licensed, and 80 sit down to dinner. There are 28 bedrooms in the main house plus half a dozen suites and a boathouse bridal suite down by the water, sleeping around 70 between them, so on an exclusive-use booking almost everyone you love is under the same roof. The kitchen is entirely in-house and the hotel is frank about it — no outside caterers, no outside alcohol — which in practice means a team who cook this menu every week rather than one visiting for the day.
Where the band plays
Live music and discos are both welcome, which is not something every listed house on the lake will say. With a guest list around 80, the room is best served by a tight four or five-piece: big enough to lift a Georgian drawing room, small enough to set up without rearranging the architecture. The Garden Pavilion is the other option and a good one for a band, being purpose-built with the lake behind it rather than a room full of shutters and sash windows. Whichever you choose, agree exactly where the band will stand before the plan is fixed.
How the evening goes
The great luxury of an exclusive-use night at Storrs is that nobody has to leave. Guests step out onto the lawn between sets, watch the light go off the water, and come back in — there is no last train and no taxi rank to think about, so the dancefloor tends to hold to the end. Fireworks aren’t permitted and outdoor confetti must be biodegradable, both easy to plan around. No fixed finish is published, so agree the licensed hour with the hotel when you book and pass it to your band, along with any limit on amplified music.
Getting there and loading in
The hall sits on the A592 south of Bowness, easy to find and with parking on site, but it is a listed house with the usual narrow doorways and polished floors, so a band should allow proper time to get gear in. Arrive while the drinks reception is heading down to the lake and the sound check becomes part of the scenery.
Bands available in Cumbria and perfectly at home in a venue like this.
More live music in Cumbria.
- Wedding Bands in Cumbria
- Events Bands in Cumbria
- Cumbria Tribute Acts
- Cumbria Wedding DJs
- Cumbria Corporate Entertainment
Worth reading before you book: Sound Limiters Explained. More questions answered on our England & Wales FAQs.