The Good Hotel Guide is the leading independent guide to hotels in Great Britain & Ireland, and also covers parts of Continental Europe. The Guide was first published in 1978. It is written for the reader seeking impartial advice on finding a good place to stay. Hotels cannot buy their way into the Guide. The editors and inspectors do not accept free hospitality on their anonymous visits to hotels. All hotels in the Guide receive a free basic listing. A fee is charged for a full web entry.
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10 of the best hotels for bird watching
Hotels for bird watching From the spring dawn chorus at La Sablonnerie on Little Sark, a veritable orchestra of Blackcap, Common Whitethroat, Willow Warbler and Garden Warbler song, to the coastal call of Herring Gulls, Lesser and Greater Black-backed Gulls and Fulmars. It's not just hotels themselves that make for an enchanting escape, but the surrounding wildlife as well - as all bird watching enthusiasts will know.
Swinton Park, Yorkshire
Featured Hotels
The Cottage in the Wood
Malvern Wells, Worcestershire
Exclusive GHG Reader Christmas Stay Special Offer
'Unparalleled views over the Severn Valley' can be seen from this hotel, in extensive grounds high above the Malvern Hills.
Trefeddian Hotel
Aberdovey, Gwynedd
'Extend Your Weekend' Special Offer
Although the Cave-Browne-Cave family has sold its big, white hotel above Cardigan Bay, which it has operated since the days of silent film, new owners BLS UK Hotels Ltd are expected to keep things very much as they always have been, maintaining the existing management.
Pen-y-Dyffryn
Oswestry, Shropshire
February/March 25% Discount Dinner B&B Special Offer
A walker's paradise on the Welsh border, the Hunter family's very dog-friendly hotel, in a Georgian former rectory with a 'beautiful garden and views', is much beloved by readers.
The Dog at Wingham
Canterbury, Kent
Super Special Two Night Special Offer
In a characterful village between Sandwich and Canterbury, Marc Bridgen's gastropub with individually styled bedrooms is committed to local sourcing, with interesting seasonal menus and regular celebratory themed evenings and events.
The Rose & Crown
Barnard Castle, Co. Durham
'Spring Awakening Break' Special Offer
An ideal base for walking and wildlife enthusiasts, this 18th-century inn with excellent pub food stands beside a Saxon church in a stunning village in Teesdale.
Knockinaam Lodge
Stranraer, Dumfries And Galloway
10% Discount Special Offer
Where the road ends and the Irish Sea begins, this former Victorian hunting lodge with a private cove is secluded, unapologetically traditional and rich in comforts and good food.
Bodysgallen Hall and Spa
Llandudno, Conwy
'The Great Half Price Break' Special Offer
This Tudor Gothic-style Elizabethan mansion, extended over centuries, overlooks parkland with a rare 17th-century parterre, walled rose garden, cascade, lily pond and follies.
Cuckoo Brow Inn
Ambleside, Cumbria
Two Night 15% Discount Special Offer
Whether you turn up with muddy boots or in your Sunday best, with wet dogs or children, you will be greeted with a warm welcome at this jolly country inn between Windermere and Beatrix Potter's Hill Top home.
Forss House
Thurso, Highland
'Whisky Away' Special Offer
Under the big skies of Caithness, wrapped in woodland and a curve of the River Forss, this Georgian mansion offers the grandeur of Scottish country-house living but with modern-day warmth and comforts.
Ty Mawr
Brechfa, Carmarthenshire
'Winter Escape' Special Offer
A 17th-century country house on the edge of Brechfa Forest receives high praise for the warmth of the welcome, its ambience and top-notch, locally sourced food.
The Feathered Nest
Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire
25% Discount Two-Night Special Offer
Inventive cooking of beautifully presented dishes impress at this gastropub overlooking the Evenlode valley, with four rooms that are smart but not ostentatiously 'designer'.
Hambleton Hall
Oakham, Rutland
'Winter Break' Special Offer
The epitome of country-house luxury with gourmet dining, Tim and Stefa Hart's hotel stands on a peninsula, overlooking beautiful gardens and the shining expanse of Rutland Water.
Shieldaig Lodge
Gairloch, Highland
'Whisky Lovers' Special Offer
Whale watching, spectacular sunsets and starry, starry nights are among the wonders at this Victorian former hunting lodge on a wooded estate lapped by Loch Gairloch.
The Priory
Wareham, Dorset
'A Night To Remember' Special Offer
There's certainly nothing monastic about this much-loved 'olde-world hotel with charm in abundance', in a 'wonderful building with a cleverly added glass dining room' looking out over gardens bordered by the River Frome.
Middlethorpe Hall & Spa
York, Yorkshire
'Autumn and Winter Break' Special Offer
Just over a mile from York, this imposing William and Mary country house in 20 acres of beautiful gardens and parkland offers 'first-class food and service'.
Ees Wyke Country House
Ambleside, Cumbria
Two Night Stay Spring Special Offer
The Devonshire Arms
Skipton, Yorkshire
'Spring Escape on the Estate' Special Offer
A former 17th-century inn, which is part of the Duke of Devonshire's 30,000-acre estate at Bolton Abbey, is today an impressive country-house hotel, with fine dining and a spa.
The Nevill Arms
Market Harborough, Leicestershire
Festive 2025 Special Offer
A brook runs by the terrace of this smartly refurbished gastropub with rooms, where you can eat locally sourced, imaginative dishes in the restaurant or alfresco, or simply enjoy a pint with the locals.
The Brisley Bell
Norfolk
Complimentary Bottle of Gusbourne Special Offer
Amelia Nicholson and Marcus Seaman have revived the fortunes of this friendly village local gastropub, with its beautiful garden, characterful bedrooms and exceptional food.
Lindeth Fell
Bowness-On-Windermere, Cumbria
January/February Sale Special Offer
Above Windermere, this Edwardian country house lies in gardens that melt into the glorious landscape. The hotel is part of the Storrs Collection (see Storrs Hall).
The Black Swan
Kirkby Stephen, Cumbria
Spring Break 'Dine & Stay' Special Offer
Family run, dog friendly and welcoming, this village pub at the foot of Howgill fells, between Lakes and Dales, is widely praised for its comfortable, individually styled bedrooms, pub classics and more creative dishes.
The White Horse
Brancaster Staithe, Norfolk
Third Night B&B Free Special Offer
The superb setting of the Nye family's hotel overlooking salt marshes to the sea and Scolt Head Island is matched by 'exceptional food and service', say readers who go back year after year.
Askham Hall
Penrith, Cumbria
Foodie Midweek Break Special Offer
With a Michelin-starred restaurant, Grade II listed garden, 17th-century pele tower and French drawing room, Askham Hall sounds as if it might be very formal; not a bit of it. 'The most homely stately hotel we have ever stayed in,' reports one reader.
Soar Mill Cove Hotel
Salcombe, Devon
'Stay Longer Save More' Special Offer
You'll find everything you need for a holiday at this family-run, child-friendly, dog-friendly hotel tucked away in a valley, with a path to a secluded sandy beach.
The Star
Alfriston, Sussex
'Relax and Restore' Special Offer
There is star quality indeed at Olga and Alex Polizzi's updated version of a historic Tudor inn, in a charming medieval South Downs village.
The Traddock
Settle, North Yorkshire
Yorkshire Gourmet Break Special Offer
Family run, dog-friendly and beloved of readers, the Reynolds's small country-house hotel is praised for its comfort, service and ambitious cooking.
The Beech House and Olive Branch
Clipsham, Rutland
Special 25th Anniversary Midweek Two Night Break Special Offer
'People come here for the food, and for good reason,' says a Guide insider of this buzzy pub with rooms, which is 'very much ye olde village inn, with rustic furniture and roaring fires under the beams'.
Scarista House
Isle Of Harris, Western Isles
Early Bird Autumn Three Nights for the Price of Two Special Offer
The long drive is worth it to this edge-of-the-world location, where a Georgian manse, with pretty, traditional rooms and superb food, overlooks a long sandy beach.
The Atlantic Hotel
St Brelade, Jersey
Atlantic 'Winter Retreat' Special Offer
Glamorous ocean vistas draw the eye beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows of this hotel, on a headland above St Ouen's Bay, beside Le Moye Golf Club. Designed to recall 1930s marine architecture, it has a pool in landscaped grounds and an ambience of holiday fun and leisure, with gourmet picnics on offer for a day's surfing or wildlife spotting.
Loch Gorm House
Bruichladdich, Argyll And Bute
Fiona Doyle is your welcoming host at this B&B on the shores of Loch Indaal with stunning views across the bay and a home-from-home ambience.
Hotels for bird watching From the spring dawn chorus at La Sablonnerie on Little Sark, a veritable orchestra of Blackcap, Common Whitethroat, Willow Warbler and Garden Warbler song, to the coastal call of Herring Gulls, Lesser and Greater Black-backed Gulls and Fulmars. It's not just hotels themselves that make for an enchanting escape, but the surrounding wildlife as well - as all bird watching enthusiasts will know. Perhaps you will venture to Norfolk, often described at the birdwatching capital of Britain. Here, the salt marshes and vast open skies around The Blakeney Hotel and the Blakeney National Nature Reserve, are an important breeding area for sea birds and a wide variety of other birdlife that changes with the seasons. It's little wonder that the National Trust wardens live and work to protect and conserve the wildlife and landscape. Those visiting The Pig at Combe are in for a treat, as bird watchers report sightings of Peregrines resting on the river bank, flocks of Pied Wagtails, Herring Gulls, Cormorants, Mallards and Canada Geese close to the River Otter. Equally, at the coastal paradise of Burgh Island at Bigbury on Sea, those seeking a 1920s escape in the famously Art Deco style hotel, are also wowed by the seascapes from the private island. Accessible only across a stretch of sand where the tide comes in from both sides, via the hotel's unique sea tractor, nature loving guests combine elegance and style with mesmerising natural beauty. From the Long-billed Dowitcher to the Blue-winged Teal, the Glossy Ibis to the Ring-necked Duck and the Western Cattle Egret, it's a destination that's enchanting in every way.






























































































