Between artsy Chichester and the sandy beaches of West Wittering, Lloyd van Rooyen and Gavin Wilson’s hotel ‘exceeds expectations’.

‘Here’s a taste of Cotswold heritage: mullioned windows, beamed ceilings, flagstone floors, the sweet smell of wood smoke.’

The day is one long round of pleasure at this ‘luxurious but unstuffy’ Edwardian country house beneath the South Downs, where classic lawn sports and garden games make jolly the ‘gorgeous, well-maintained’ grounds.

The lawn stretches down to Beaulieu river from this 18th-century shipbuilder's house. It's a fine place, today, to watch the boats on the water, as those once-upon-a-time shipwrights did.

A survivor from a more elegant age, this family-friendly Victorian hotel grandly stands on the seafront.

With a lily-scented terrace in the summer and a log fire in the winter, all is ‘enchanting’ at this ‘elegant, comfortable’ Georgian manor house.

Think of anything you might want from a luxury hotel – ‘friendly, professional staff’, ‘well-appointed bedrooms’, ‘delightful’ public spaces, a ‘memorable’ breakfast with peerless granola.

‘What makes this 16th-century freehouse so special is the atmosphere: informal and friendly, yet 100% professional.’

‘The welcome is excellent’ at this revitalised 18th-century free house, on a quiet road running through a ‘peaceful Downland village full of birdsong’ – just ask the locals popping in for tea or a high-stakes round at the ‘jolly quiz night’.

In ‘well-maintained ornamental gardens’, this ‘handsome hotel’ occupies an ‘extensively enlarged’ old farmhouse on the outskirts of a ‘delightful’ medieval village.

‘We wanted old-world charm with modern facilities, and we got it – down to the cosy bar and the slightly sloping wooden floors.’

In this Cotswold town on the River Windrush, duck under the wisteria-draped arch of this well-updated hotel and enter a building rife with history.

Come in to log fires and local ales at this 18th-century coaching inn (Fuller’s Hotels and Inns) between the cathedral and the medieval college.

Sweep up the tree-lined avenue to this Victorian mansion standing in ‘fantastic’ Gertrude Jekyll-designed gardens; when you arrive, take in the far-reaching views of ‘lovely, peaceful’ countryside.

Come for the pizzas, stay for the pause – in one of the bright, contemporary bedrooms at this refurbished honey-stone inn, eight miles from Oxford city centre.

Guests at this privately owned hotel join a tradition begun by the rowdy bunch of sailors, shipbuilders and smugglers who once crowded the 18th-century watering hole.

In leather and tweed, burnished wood and rustic plaid, Dominic Wood’s ‘lovely old pub’ is a ‘delightful, friendly place’.

A 19th-century resting place for the Household Cavalry as its soldiers made their way to Portsmouth, this 350-year-old inn remains a relaxing refuge for today’s travellers.

‘A perfect little dog-friendly hotel.’ Imogene and Robert Anglaret ensure that travelling pets and their human companions are well taken care of at their country hotel in the New Forest.

‘Bring any member of your family here and they would enjoy it.’

‘Simply lovely.’ In the foothills of the South Downs, this white-painted, rustic-chic inn is firmly rooted in the countryside.

Near the Chichester canal towpath, Mariella and William Fleming’s village pub-with-rooms has been rejuvenated with a fresh Scandinavian vibe.

‘Always buzzy and friendly’, this pub-with-rooms in two ‘tastefully refurbished’ Regency town houses near the harbour is a good-natured place, liked by locals and visitors in equal measure.

Wild horses and donkeys nose around on the road outside this 18th-century coaching inn, in a quiet hamlet within the New Forest.