The view is one of marshes and moored boats, of creeks and children crabbing, from Emma Stannard’s well-established, family-friendly hotel on the quayside of a coastal village.

‘The Michelin star is well earned’ at Tracy and Galton Blackiston’s friendly restaurant-with-rooms close to the north Norfolk coast.

Wide Norfolk countryside stretches out on either side of this ‘very special’ place.

Wide, tranquil views of salt marshes add to the relaxing atmosphere at the Nye family’s ‘first-rate’ Norfolk inn. ‘Cheerful, pleasingly confident’ staff, ‘modern, well-equipped’ rooms and ‘tasty, varied’ menus seal the deal.

The creeper-covered, red brick building appears modest from the outside, but there are ‘excellent dinners’ within: Kevin and Jacki Mangoelles’s restaurant-with-rooms has a ‘well-deserved' Michelin star.

Part of the new wave of ‘boutique B&Bs’, this handsomely refurbished Victorian villa stands on a ‘quiet, attractive street’, with a ‘friendly welcome’ and a platter of cream scones within.

‘Lush grounds’ lead from James Holliday and Anna Duttson’s ‘stylish’, wisteria-hung Georgian house down to the River Bure.

Artful surprises await around every corner at art dealer Ivor Braka’s sophisticated yet ‘relaxed’ pub-with-rooms: find Stubbs engravings above cracking fires, a Damien Hirst painting in the ladies’ loo.

Overlooking the village duck pond, Rebecca and Robert Bradley’s smart B&B is a fine base for local exploration, the sandy beaches and salt marshes of the north Norfolk coast within easy reach.