‘As soon as we arrived the kids got started on the Woolley Grange Sheep Challenge treasure hunt,’ writes a Guide insider after a stay at this ‘beautiful Jacobean manor house in lovely grounds’.

The Barlows, whose family have run Treglos for 50 years, have sadly decided to close the hotel.

It had ‘that “special” feel of a very good and well-run hotel’, found a visitor to this country house hotel and spa (Relais & Châteaux) in deepest Thomas Hardy country.

In a hillside location with ‘stunning sea views’, this supremely family-friendly hotel has something for everyone – indeed, everything for everyone.

Once used to billet D-Day troops, this revamped early 17th-century mansion now hosts ‘young children, exhausted parents’ and grandparents.

A Victorian baroque showstopper, this manor house stands on a steep hill in gardens above the Fowey estuary. It is part of the Luxury Family Hotels group.

‘Completely wonderful in every way.’ ‘One of our absolute favourites.’ Readers give the thumbs-up to Richard Seton’s spa hotel overlooking the River Dart.

It is as if a cruise liner had docked on the banks of Dorset’s Stour several years ago, to the sound of popping corks, and everyone liked it so much that they’d stayed.

On the edge of Dartmoor National Park, with views to granite Haytor, the Hassell family’s hotel is ‘a little off the beaten tracks – but worth finding’.

You know where you are with a Pig. The style set by Robin Hutson at Brockenhurst (see entry) is brilliantly carried off at this Georgian manor house.

‘There are chandeliers all over’ at Christa and Ian Taylor’s latest addition to the Bath hotel scene – the old Carfax, run formerly by the Salvation Army, now spiffed up to the nines, with the addition of a small spa.

Bird’s-eye views of the Lizard peninsula, little luxuries and an easy air turn this clifftop hotel into a stress-busting retreat.

For 120 years the Grose family have looked after this family-friendly’ hotel approached by lanes ‘resplendent with wild flowers’.

‘Such a treat’. Wrapped by ‘gorgeous’ grounds, this revitalised 18th-century luxury hotel and amenity-packed spa girds the eastern Cotswolds.

A Victorian pile almost as impressive as the Atlantic swell outside, the Armstrong family’s child- and dog-friendly hotel overlooks one of the best surfing spots in Cornwall.

Whether testing the surf for the first time, or paddle boarding like an old pro, there’s a pursuit to suit at Will Ashworth’s ‘great’ beachside hotel.

From a quiet seafront road, this festively updated turn-of the-century edifice has spectacular views over the azure bay.

The hub of the village, within trotting distance of the iconic white horse, this ‘impressive’ pub-with-rooms has much going on.

‘Behind the dramatic facade lies a beautiful garden,’ writes a reader in praise of this hotel and spa with its green oasis at the centre of a divine Georgian crescent.

Hidden within wooded acres on the Helford river, this 18th-century manor house was recently revamped, acquiring ‘a fresh feel’.

‘Blissfully old-fashioned’, this large, traditional hotel is steps from the sheltered bay that has attracted visitors since Victorian times.

Restored and refurbished by its owner, Claire Carter, this ‘lovely’ country house has a ‘luxurious, contemporary’ style and ‘friendly, welcoming staff who really make the place’.

‘It was not only the view that made our stay, but the whole ambience,’ writers a Guide regular this year, of this Victorian hotel and spa on the Salcombe estuary.