Character and comfort define the best of B&Bs, and these wonderful guest houses always give a sense of being welcomed with open arms, quite literally in some cases. From converted cider presses to bedrooms adorned with Georgian antiques, expect high standards, and occasionally a quirky window and sloping floor board or two – it’s all part of the charm. Here are the Good Hotel Guide’s top 10 B&Bs.
Editor’s Choice 2017 B&Bs
The Manor Town House - Three for Two
Fishguard
Close to the lively town square, the smart, powder-blue facade of Helen and Chris Sheldon’s ‘friendly’ Georgian town house gives no clue to the vast sea view that unfurls behind it.
From £85 per night
Jeake’s House
Rye
There’s charm a-plenty at Jenny Hadfield’s B&B on cobbled Mermaid Street, its interior a characterful mix of low beams, blazing fires, dark panelling, labyrinthine passages and steep stairs.
From £95 per night
The Quay House
Clifden
‘There’s no reception as such – just a warm welcome, straight into first names, and an easy smile.’ Guide inspectors in 2016 were ‘charmed’ by the ‘generosity of spirit’ at this ‘well-run’ B&B on the harbour’s edge.
From £155.00 per night
Blackmore Farm
Cannington
‘I cannot fault this B&B in any way,’ writes a first-time visitor in 2016.
From £60 per night
Apsley House
Bath
Original oil paintings, antiques and objets d’art fill this ‘imposing’ Georgian house, a 19th-century retreat built by the Duke of Wellington, rumour has it, for his mistress.
From £99 per night
Swan House
Hastings
The ‘lovely, warm atmosphere’ at Brendan McDonagh’s elegant B&B puts guests in ‘a good mood’, say Guide inspectors in 2016.
From £120 per night
Timberstone
Clee Stanton
‘It was a total joy to return,’ write readers this year on their fourth visit to Tracey Baylis and Alex Read’s B&B in a rural hamlet.
From £98 per night
Old Whyly
East Hoathly
Sarah Burgoyne’s ‘beautiful’ Grade II listed Georgian manor house in a Wealden village is filled with antiques and oil paintings, and surrounded by flower-filled gardens, ‘glorious’ in all seasons.
From £98 per night
Dalshian House
Pitlochry
‘Warm and welcoming’, Martin and Heather Walls’s ‘absolutely beautiful’ 18th-century house stands in ‘tranquil’ woodland and gardens – all the better to relax, unwind and keep a keen eye out for red squirrels, rabbits and all manner of wild birds.
2 Blackburne Terrace
Liverpool
Behind a row of lime trees on a calm cobbled drive, there’s style (and home-made sweets) aplenty at Glenn and Sarah Whitter’s ‘excellent’ upmarket B&B. In a discreet Georgian town house, it is within walking distance of theatres, restaurants and the two cathedrals.
From £160 per night