Journalist Christopher Sharp travelled to Coniston in Cumbria's Lake District, the village where Princess Kate Middleton went on holiday with family as a child, and where history was made09:58, 20 May 2026Updated 09:58, 20 May 2026Kate Middleton, the Princess of Wales, is going to be the next Queen and will sit alongside her husband Prince William, the heir to the throne.‌Even before she joined the Royal Family, there was a lot of interest in her past and upbringing. Inevitably, she was also featured in the last few series of the popular Netflix drama The Crown.‌However, she was once a civilian rather than a royal and, like many people, went on holidays in the UK. One of the places she visited was Coniston in the Lake District, it’s just over the hill from Windermere, and although I was there to see the Bluebird K7, a famous jet engined hydroplane, it was worth looking around a village the senior royal enjoyed as a child.‌Obviously, because of Bluebird K7’s runs on Coniston Water, the place was much busier than usual. In fact, according to the 2021 Census, its population is under 1,000 people, who will be spoilt for choice, as the picturesque village also has an impressive assortment of restaurants and cafés on offer.I counted about four or five during a short walk along the main street, including a café where I stopped for a coffee and a burger, but a broader look on Google Maps shows about six venues, plus the Bluebird Café by Coniston Water’s shoreline.‌At a time when so many pubs are closing, around two each day according to data released in May, it feels surprising to see hospitality venues thriving in such a small village, but then again, Coniston does have a few things working for it.Firstly, its Lake District location is a draw for hikers, cyclists, and other tourists travelling around the region. Coniston is also positioned right next to the Old Man of Coniston mountain, alongside a series of campsites.What’s more, with nearby Windermere only a short drive or cycle away and hiking a year round pursuit, I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a lot of footfall overflow. If Windermere’s too busy, Coniston is nearby.‌And then there’s the lake itself; Coniston Water may be shorter than Windermere, but it has an added dose of jet-propelled history on its side, Bluebird. Ever since her records in the 1950s, and horror crash in 1967, people have been drawn to the lake where British speed record breaker Donald Campbell made history, and then tragically died.Now, because Bluebird is back, and with Britain having an ever present love of motor racing, Coniston has a new draw, especially as Bluebird now lives in the John Ruskin Museum which built a new wing especially for the boat. There is also the semi-regular Coniston Speed Week where speed boats take to the same course.‌The John Ruskin Museum was named after the Victoria artist John Ruskin, who lived in the village from 1872 until he died in 1900.Princess Kate, before that prefix was even visible on the horizon of her future, was attending this village and area on her holidays.Speaking to The Standard about the family's experiences there, Kate’s brother, James, 39, talked about what it was like spending time on the water, and how it felt like they were in the world of the books they’d read on holiday, in an existence between reality and dreams.‌He said: “It stems from my childhood, reading Beatrix Potter’s Peter Rabbit, and as I got older, Arthur Ransome’s Swallows and Amazons. As my family and I spent time on Coniston Water and Lake Windermere, it was almost like we were living the stories in real life.“But as a family, there’s a connection to the Lake District dating back generations. My great-great-grandfather on my father’s side lived in Yorkshire and so for him and his family it was somewhere to go nearby.Article continues below“Every school holiday we would stay anywhere from a weekend to a week there, in sun or snow or rain, and because there was no electricity in the family cottage it was a real adventure — hiking in the mountains and playing in the Lakes.”I’m not surprised her family kept coming back, it was my first time visiting the Lake District and I was blown away by its beauty. I have to admit that as I pulled off the M6 and saw the sun bouncing off the hills that I may have been a little astounded.