Hotels in the Lake District opened their doors over the weekend to help people struggling in the snow.

The Inn Collection Group - which manages the Wateredge Inn in Ambleside and the Sun Inn in Bowness - welcomed stranded commuters once the roads were deemed impassable.

General Manager of the Sun Inn, Sarah McIntosh, opted to walk around the town at 1:00am on Sunday to ensure that no one nearby was choosing to sleep in their cars.

She said: "Luckily I didn’t find any, but we also released two rooms around midnight that were non arrivals by guests who couldn’t get to us.

"Through that, we managed to accommodate a couple with a small infant and an elderly couple with two dogs."

It proved to be a busy evening for both hotels with 120 rooms booked across nine properties in the space of two hours as towns and villages found themselves cut off.

The Wateredge Inn answered a call for help from Windermere Lake Cruises and offered up rooms for staff stranded at Waterhead Pier as the weather continued to close in.

The Mail: The Wateredge Inn proved to be both a picturesque view and a safe haven for travellersThe Wateredge Inn proved to be both a picturesque view and a safe haven for travellers (Image: The Inn Collection Group)

Though all available bedrooms ended up booked by the early evening, the Angel Inn ensured its fires remained burning to offer a warm lounge for anyone left looking for shelter.

"Saturday was one of those moments when communities like the Lake District come together and with our position as an inn, it was important to us that we stepped up where we were needed to help," Sarah explained.

“With the nearest official refuge up in Windermere, those conditions needed those of us in Bowness to come together and all the hospitality businesses combined to make sure people were safe and looked after.”

Roughly a dozen people were sheltered by the Angel Inn before it finally closed its doors at 2:30am.

Though snow continued to fall heavily during the night, by Sunday morning the efforts of snow plough and gritter teams ensured that main routes were accessible allowing those who opted against extending their stay a window in which to start their return journeys.