‘Nothing compares’ with the Cunliffes’ ‘really special’ country house hotel and its glamorous satellite, Lake House, with spa, half a mile away.

'A very special place.’ ‘Utterly charming.’ 'It’s not the Ritz, but you will feel like a lord.’ Lavish and frequent praise in 2019 for Wendy and Simon Bennett’s Victorian fantasy castle in the Eden valley.

'Glorious fell views’, ‘excellent food’ and ‘capable, obliging staff’ are found at this family-friendly spot on the lower slopes of Skiddaw.

‘Kevin and Nicki Winsland, with their daughters Charlotte and Bex, have created a hotel of great charm and warmth.’ Readers enthuse over a stay at this small Victorian country house with gardens running down to the River Rothay, in a village forever associated with Wordsworth.

‘Simply awesome,' writes a reader this year, about this 'fabulous' hotel on wooded slopes overlooking Grasmere.

‘This will become our stop-over of choice on the way to west Scotland.’ A full entry this year for Alison and Andi Sambrook's ‘small, unpretentious hotel’ opposite the green in a village bypassed by the A66.

Enfolded within verdant gardens, an 18th-century country house with ‘stunning views’ across to the Langdale Pikes.

A gabled Arts and Crafts country house in extensive grounds with ‘tantalising’ views of Lake Windermere and Coniston Fells.

On a wonderfully scenic perch above Windermere, Tracey Robinson and Joanna Harbottle’s 19th-century stone-and-slate country house is a ‘very welcoming’ retreat.

Visitors to Diana Lewthwaite’s country house in Beatrix Potter country are guaranteed a colourful welcome – its grounds, designed into ‘garden rooms’, provide blooms across all seasons.