‘Such a comfortable place.’ ‘Peaceful and restful.’ ‘Great hotel.’ Several of our readers are regulars at Glynis and Simon Wood’s family-run Lakeland village hotel in the Wordsworth heartlands.

‘It’s difficult to pinpoint what makes this hotel so special.’ Atop a winding driveway, this Gothic pile is ‘light, airy, full of boutiquey charm – and, naturally, has delightful views across Grasmere’.

Gerald and Margo Smith have created a gourmet destination in a lonely pub at a crossroads just to the south of the Scottish moors,’ write Guide inspectors this year.

Craig Bancroft’s Victorian country house hotel in the Ribble valley has held a Michelin star since 1996, under former chef/director Nigel Haworth, and now Lisa Allen.

On the broad promendade of the ancient wall of this ‘lovely city’, overlooking the River Dee, Tim Mills and Michael Stephen’s Georgian villa has been made over in a spirit of exuberance.

Grand from every direction, this ‘very smart’ Grade II listed hotel (Bespoke Hotels) is ‘a very good place to stay, peopled with polite, cheerful staff’.