‘A charming place in a charming situation’, Fiona and Paul Robinson’s ‘stylish, informal’ New England-inspired hotel soaks in the spread of Gerrans Bay.

There’s no escaping the sweep of the sea at this ‘really super hotel’ above Falmouth Bay: a wraparound deck catches the sun; French doors in the restaurant open on to terraces; nearly all the bedrooms look across the water towards St Anthony’s lighthouse.

Literary pilgrims follow narrow single-track lanes to this Victorian rectory in a ‘magical setting’ in the Valency valley, where Thomas Hardy met and courted his first wife, Emma Gifford.

Clean, contemporary design, eco credentials and ‘wonderful views’ attract guests to this voguish, adults-only hotel overlooking ‘a classic Cornish bay’.

Let the sound of seagulls and views of sand and surf introduce the day: most of the ‘clean, fresh, contemporary’ bedrooms in this ‘marvellously situated’ quayside hotel have views over the estuary.

At the end of a long driveway, this ‘magnificent, lovingly restored’ castellated mansion is now a grand country B&B surrounded by extensive grounds on the banks of the River Tamar.

With a champagne- and cake-filled pantry to plunder, plus boozy hot chocolate before bed, this glamorous operation turns traditional notions of a B&B on their head.

Coastal colours and a breezy style fill this chic Edwardian house above the sandy beach at Carbis Bay.

Angela and Olivier Noverraz’s ‘beautifully appointed’ 1850s mid-terrace house is a B&B with pizzazz.

Janie and Mike Cooksley have brought a riotous combination of colour and eye-catching features to the Cornish countryside.