Cartmel is a village in Furness (traditionally "Lancashire-over-the-Sands" (and in the ceremonial county of Cumbria), England, 2+1⁄4 miles (3.5 kilometres) northwest of Grange-over-Sands close to the River Eea.

Whilst its history has been in its ecclesiastical and agricultural communities, Cartmel has since the mid-20th century developed as a minor tourist destination, being just outside the Lake District National Park.

[2] The place-name is first attested in 677, when the Cartmel Peninsula was granted to St Cuthbert, whose influence may explain why by the Norman Conquest the village was known as Kirkby, a name indicating the location of a church.

[5] Agriculture was the chief industry of the area until the mid-20th century,[3] dominated by the lands of the Cavendishes, and remains an important part of the village.

[8] Cartmel Racecourse dates back to at least the 19th century, but grew in popularity when it became a National Hunt course after the Second World War.

It started to attract major professionals in the 1960s, and now hosts nine meetings a year between May and August, the biggest traditionally in Whit Week.

The frontispiece in his 1937 book Lancashire Brew is 'Cartmel from an etching by Joseph Knight', the founder of the Manchester School of Painters.

Cartmel is part of the Westmorland and Lonsdale parliamentary constituency, of which Tim Farron is the current Member of parliament representing the Liberal Democrats.