Until the copper mines were revitalised around 1859, Coniston was a scattered rural community. Its best known feature is The Old Man of Coniston, a spectacular mountain which rises dramatically behind the houses when seen from the village centre. Today the village is a good base for walkers and climbers, and those wanting to investigate the Tilberthwaite Slate quarries.
For the last 30 years of his life, Victorian artist, poet, critic and philosopher John Ruskin lived at Brantwood, just across the lake. And it was on Coniston Water that Donald Campbell's famous attempt to break the world water speed record in 1967 ended in tragedy. Visitors can take a trip out on the public launches, which call at Brantwood.
The Monk Coniston estate, owned by the writer Beatrix Potter and bequeathed to the National Trust on her death, stretches from Coniston to Skelwith Bridge, and includes the famous beauty spot, Tarn Hows.
The Black Bull Inn, a 400-year-old coaching inn at the foot of the Old Man of Coniston, is home to the Coniston Brewing Company, makers of Bluebird Bitter, voted the Campaign for Real Ale's Supreme Champion Beer of Britain 1998.
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- Brantwood, Home of John Ruskin, Coniston
- The Ruskin Museum, Coniston
- Steam Yacht Gondola, Coniston
- Coniston Launch, Coniston