'In its glory, in the very beautiful Otter valley', this Elizabethan manor house is the fifth member of Robin Hutson’s Pig family.

‘One for traditionalists,’ write trusted Guide readers, of this child-friendly, dog-friendly Jacobean ancestral home in Thomas Hardy country, run by owners Richard and Brian Prideaux-Brune, with Richard’s wife, Alison.

‘Definitely one to go back to.’ This ‘super hotel’, housed in a 16th-century priory on the River Frome, continues to gather fans.

A scattering of jazz memorabilia sets the tone – and hits the right note – at this Georgian country house B&B on a ridge overlooking the Cary river valley.

‘To call it a hotel is to miss the point.’ In a peaceful valley, Richard Johnston’s quirky B&B is ‘a blend of rural escape and aristocratic eccentricity'.

With thrilling views over Lyme Bay, the Jurassic Coast and the Cobb, Kathryn Haskins luxury hotel and restaurant is swaddled by lush clifftop gardens.

A Regency cottage-orné, built by Jeffry Wyatville as a fishing lodge for Georgiana, Duchess of Bedford, is run today in characteristic relaxed-chic style by Olga Polizzi (see also Tresanton, St Mawes).

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.

In the former brew house, Bertie and Bryony Hancock’s sophisticated B&B is surrounded by the National Trust’s Buckland Abbey estate.

Michael Caines’s ‘beautifully restored’ Georgian manor house stands in parkland beside the luminous Exe estuary.

Attention to detail, peaceful surroundings and cheerful hospitality make Julie and Edward Christian’s ‘beautifully furnished’ B&B ‘a special place’.

Historic grounds tumble away from this ‘magnificent, lovingly restored’ castellated mansion on the banks for the Tamar river.

In sub-tropical gardens with views over Lyme Bay, the D’Allen family’s hotel occupies a grand Georgian manor house, once home to John Callcott Horsley, designer of the first Christmas card.

The Pear Tree at Purton closed down on January 2nd, 2018. It has had an entry in the Guide for many years. Anne Young, the owner, who has retired after more than 30 years helping customers, says: ‘making happy memories for guests has been a pleasure.’

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’.