Where to stay in The Lake District/Active holiday

[BatsInHibernation]

Family with 2 children aged 11 & 12
We are going in Feb half term. We plan to walk, and climb but only the low fells.
I'm not sure where to stay to be close to the best family friendly walks. Any experience and advice greatly appreciated. We will be getting an air BnB.
We are all reasonably fit but I wouldn't want to do any climbs beyond easy ones, not as this time of year 😬
Any other ideas for the area would be great. We would love to ice skate/toboggan/zip wire etc.
Husband and kids would also like to visit caves, but I won't be doing that 😂

Feb half term depending on the weather could be very cold and snowy. Some of the higher roads might be shut.

do you have walking experience and proper gear?

Windermere and Ambleside have a lot of accommodation and tourist infrastructure. There’s a train station at Windermere. You’ll want a car to access stuff as the buses are limited in winter.

Anywhere that has a village with a pub and shop should be OK. Keswick is a good bet. Or Glenridding which is smaller but has great walks direct from the door or from the steamer at Aira Force or Howtown.

There are big and smaller walks everywhere, really.

I’d be looking at the options for bad weather. Are you ok in a cottage with the fire lit playing UNO on the 4th day of relentless freezing rain? Or would you be looking at cinema in Ambleside, climbing wall in Keswick (and the pencil museum)?

There is a nice walk at Rydal Water to the Rydal Cave (massive) , and brilliant caves at Cathedral Quarry by Langdale.

Lovely low felll walks include Hallin Fell near Howtown, Glenridding Dodd, Loughrigg (near Rydal Water / Langdale) , Catbells is straightforward .

As long as you know exactly where you are including in sudden thick mist, know what time dusk falls and have properly suitable gear.

What PP said

Personally I love the Lakes in winter but dealing with very cold wind is tiring. Surprisingly so if you're not used to it.

Ice is extremely unpleasant to deal with on low level paths. It's often a much better time to head up into the snow but you need confidence and experience and lots of good kit.

I think Keswick would be a great base. A town and walks nearby. Windermere is so full of tourists and traffic I have found. Might be quieter in Feb?

As others have said, the weather may be quite restrictive at February half term. But then you never know, you might get a run of crisp, sunny days. I'd be prepared for rain though!
In terms of other active things to do, Go Ape at Whinlatter will be open in February and I'd guess Grizedale will be too. There are good walking and mountaun biking trails of varying difficulty in both places too.
I think Honister Slate Mine will be open too which might be of interest and you should be able to get boat trips on most of the big lakes - Ullswater is my favourite.
You'll still be able to find plenty to do even if the weather is poor and there are lots of well marked lower level routes - have a look at the Ullswater Way. As long as you've got suitable clothing and don't venture anywhere that's beyond your experience level you should have a good time.

Thanks all. I plan to be very conservative about the walks, we will have proper gear, and we won't be tackling anything unsuitable. Small amounts of snow is fine but ice is a bit of a worry.
I've been to Windermere in Jan but a long time ago and just did some straightforward dog walks, it wasn't that cold.
We don't plan on being out after dark, and if it's freezing rain then that's what we will have a lovely air BnB and armfuls of books for.
It's a long, long, way to go though, to sit in an air BnB if the weather doesn't allow for walks 😂