Hidden down a narrow cobbled street, this ‘fantastically located’ hotel is set in leafy gardens within the city’s medieval walls.

On a country lane outside Richmond, this stone-built Georgian house is the stuff rural ruminations are made of.

In 300 acres of parkland originally laid out by landscape designer Humphry Repton, this welcoming and romantic Grade I listed Regency mansion comes with impressive modern facilities. There are two golf courses, a private cinema and an award-winning rooftop spa with saunas, steam rooms, an infinity pool and herb-infused treatments. Sleek accommodation ranges from suites (some with a private terrace) in contemporary wings, to cottages and lodges. Inspired by the seasons – creative dishes are ‘exceptionally good’ in the glass-sided spa restaurant, Horto. Vegetables, fruit and flowers come from the delightful kitchen garden; the hotel’s natural springs supply the water. In the glamorous Clocktower Restaurant and Bar, a 400-year-old Catalonian olive tree takes centre stage in the light-filled conservatory.  

Grand, and grandly welcoming, this creeper-covered Victorian mansion stands in a spread of green grounds on the edge of the North York Moors.