One of the Lake District’s most popular hotels has hit the market with a £3 million guide price.

The historic New Dungeon Ghyll in Great Langdale, near Ambleside, is being marketed by the specialist hotels team at real estate advisors Colliers International.

It has come on the market after current owners, J & J Smith Hotels, have decided to sell up and focus on other business interests.

Under their ownership since 1991, the hotel has undergone substantial renovation and development and, in the year ending December 2018, generated a turnover of £1,027,000.

Set in eight acres of landscaped gardens and grounds it boasts 23 en-suite bedrooms, restaurant, bar and lounges, a two-bedroom manager’s flat, staff accommodation block and parking for more than 20 vehicles.

The hotel is a popular staging post for walkers tackling some of the Lake District’s most challenging peaks and with holidaymakers wanting peaceful isolation amongst panoramic views of the Langdale Valley and its iconic fells. It has also become a well-established wedding venue.

Julian Troup, head of UK hotels agency at Colliers International, who is managing the sale, said the hotel’s new owners had the potential to increase its already high profit margins, with scope for further development.

“Having worked tirelessly over almost 30 years to transform New Dungeon Ghyll into one of the Lake District’s most renowned country hotels, J & J Smith Hotels are offering new owners the opportunity to acquire a well-established and popular business in a stunning location in the Lake District, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

“The Lake District remains one of our most productive UK regions for hospitality sector transactions and we’re confident of attracting a strong level of interest in the property.”

The property, itself built on the site of a medieval settlement, started life as a farmhouse before becoming a hotel in 1832 – a period when the Lake District’s tourism industry was beginning to take off.