‘Down country lanes and a mile-long private drive’, this Elizabethan manor house is the Miss Piggy among Robin Hutson’s quirky country house hotels (see index). Like that porcine diva, it embodies fabulosity with a dash of irresistibility and a great, big dollop of attitude.

In a peaceful Devon valley, this family-run historic manor house is loved for its architecture, romantic atmosphere, attention to detail and fine food.

A sea tractor ferries guests across the sands to this white concrete Art Deco edifice on a tidal island, built as a party venue in the 1930s, and what a swell party it is!

Olga Polizzi’s cottage-orné with tall chimneys, verandas, gables and dormers, in an Arcadian landscape on the River Tamar, is full of flair – and of history.

Hosts Andy and Julian Banner-Price love to make their guests smile, and there is much to smile about at their award-winning boutique B&B, stylish yet infused with wit and warmth.

Drive down 'tiny country lanes', putter across from Salcombe aboard a little motorboat ferry, or walk the South West Coast Path to reach this remote hotel and spa with 'a commanding cliffside position and sublime views'.

In the sprawling grounds of the National Trust’s Buckland Abbey, this sophisticated B&B is run with bonhomie by Bertie and Bryony Hancock.

You cannot yet pop a cork from the sparkling wine made with grapes from the vineyard planted by Michelin-starred chef Michael Caines at his Georgian manor house in parkland on the Exe estuary, but you can drink deep of the good life.