Standing right on the quay overlooking estuary and salt marshes, in a coastal village of flint cottages, gift shops and galleries, Emma Stannard’s hotel is ideal for outdoorsy family holidays.

A country retreat just outside St Albans occupies an extended 300-year-old manor house, once the home of Lord Louis Mountbatten.

‘So cosy and welcoming’, a swish hotel (TA Hotel Collection, see also The Crown, Woodbridge, Shortlist) formed from three timber-framed 15th-century buildings in a medieval village.

Standing in well-maintained gardens, an 19th-century water mill is now a modern spa hotel.

Amid acres of ‘lovely’ rose gardens and landscaped lawns, this family-run hotel combines old-fashioned comfort and modern flourishes with ‘superb service’.

‘Helpful staff’ and a ‘very convenient location’ on the River Cam win top marks for this modern hotel.