Rydal, Cumbria

Rydal is a village in Cumbria, England. It is a small cluster of houses, a hotel, and St Mary's Church, on the A591 road midway between Ambleside and Grasmere.

Historically part of Westmorland, Rydal is significant in the history of English Romantic literature. William Wordsworth lived at Rydal Mount from 1813 to 1850. Dr Thomas Arnold, notable headmaster of Rugby School, had a summer home at Fox How in nearby Under Loughrigg. Arnold's son, the poet Matthew Arnold, was a frequent visitor and a close friend of Wordsworth. At the northern end of Rydal Water is White Moss House, believed to be the only house owned by Wordsworth, which he bought for his son, Willie and which remained in the Wordsworth family until the 1930s.

Rydal is often a starting point for the Fairfield horseshoe, a hillwalking ridge hike.

Transport
Stagecoach Cumbria operates two key bus services. The primary service, numbered 555, operates a route passing Keswick, Grasmere, Ambleside, Windermere, Kendal and Lancaster. Additionally, Stagecoach Cumbria offers an open-top service, known as the "Lakesider" (service 599), providing a scenic journey connecting Grasmere, Ambleside, Windermere and Bowness-on-Windermere.

The nearest railway station is Windermere; both bus routes provide direct access to and from the station.