‘We arrived on a golden Indian summer late afternoon to a warm welcome, culminating in tea on the lawn, looking beyond the ha-ha to a field.’

‘It is impossible to criticise this hotel,’ wrote a reader, praising everything from the service to the ‘delicious food’ at this mellow stone hotel.

‘The garden was entertaining at mealtimes. There seemed to be more hens on the lawn this time.’ A trusted reader on a third visit captures the spirit of James Moffett’s manor house hotel in a 'delightful Peak District location'.

On the edge of the village, with the Peak District on the doorstep, this Jacobean-style Edwardian manor house stands in a beautifully tended garden with sculpted box and yews, potager and arboretum.

‘An impressive building', this Georgian manor house ‘stands at the top of a valley, overlooking fields, rivers and bucolic bliss’.

‘A wonderful find. We had a lovely few days.’ Praise from readers in 2019 for Hari and Colin Fell’s Elizabethan farmhouse-cum-boutique hotel in a Forest of Dean village.

‘Near the end of a quiet cul-de-sac lane’, within the Peak District national park, Vivienne and Philip Taylor welcome guests to their farmhouse B&B, ‘overlooking the beauty of Hope valley’.

Shakespeare was at work up the road in Stratford when this inn was built, overlooking the green in a ‘lovely' Cotswolds village.

‘Hands-on owners, attention to detail and a warm and friendly ambience.’ All-round plaudits this year for John and Sue Cushing’s Georgian manor house hotel.

After 20 years at the helm, Steve and Nicola Reynolds continue to offer a heady brew of cosy pub, ‘wonderful’ food and ‘professional, friendly service’.

On cold days a roaring log fire warms the beamed bar at this ‘winning combination of gastropub, local inn and restaurant-with-rooms’ in a ‘pretty but unremarkable old village’.

Everyone agrees about the ‘stunning setting’ of this 18th-century dower house high in the Malvern hills: ‘One of the best views in the country.’

With ‘superb views’ of spectacular limestone cliffs, Chris and Zoe Hipwell’s Georgian town house hotel near the River Derwent is ‘a haven, in a quirky town'.

‘Beautifully appointed’, a B&B in a Grade II listed late 16th-century building overlooking a Cotswold high street of mellow stone houses.

‘Beautifully decorated’ and properly bookish, this Grade II listed village library has been converted into a cheerful B&B near the River Severn.

Just outside Ludlow, a red brick 18th-century inn on the Earl of Plymouth’s Oakly Park estate has been recently remodelled to include an open-plan 'field-to-fork' restaurant, a cosy snug, and spaces for drinking and socialising.

Off the beaten track, a cheerful welcome awaits horses, hikers and hounds at Izzy Barnard’s wild flower-filled Georgian house in prime Shropshire hacking and walking country.

Adjoining their small arable farm, a series of outbuildings has been converted by the Marriott family into homely B&B rooms.

‘This is indeed a lively community pub,’ write trusted readers, urging a promotion from the Shortlist for Kate Lewis and Chris York’s popular pub-with-rooms.

A local hot spot for real ales, signature cocktails and zesty pub classics, the Slater siblings have got country comfort down to a fine art at their stylish 18th-century coaching inn.

A smart trot up the bridleway reaches artist Jane Haigh’s rural B&B. Always on hand, the hostess provides a welcoming tea (home-made scones, clotted cream) on arrival; advice on local restaurants; even a lift into Lincoln, nearby.

In an ‘idyllic’ Cotswolds hillside village, this Palladian merchant’s mansion with Arts and Crafts add-ons is part of the Calcot Collection (see Calcot).

Families have 'a grand time' at this 16th-century manor house with spa, in ‘lovely manicured grounds’.

A new manager and a new chef last year for this popular Cotswold pub in which guests feel they can ‘genuinely relax’.