Here are the Good Hotel Guide’s Editor's Choice top 10 seaside hotels.
2021 Editor's Choice Seaside Hotels
Editor’s Choice Seaside Hotels
Soar Mill Cove Hotel
Salcombe
You get the very best of the British seaside at Keith Makepeace’s family-friendly hotel. A trail leads to the uncrowded beach, bedrooms have sea views, the menu is rich in seafood and there is easy access to the South West Coast Path.
The Nare
Veryan-in-Roseland
Not only does this family-friendly hotel have beautifully landscaped gardens leading to a secluded bay, but it also has two boats for outings on the ocean. You can explore the creeks and rivers of the Cornish coast by yacht or motor launch.
The White House
Herm
Where better than an island for an idyllic seaside stay? Car-free Herm may be small, but it has sandy beaches in spades. Everything is an easy stroll from the delightfully old-fashioned harbourside hotel, with dazzling views.
Rathmullan House
Rathmullan
It may be on the Wild Atlantic Way but this family-run hotel also has a three- kilometre beach on the shores of Lough Swilly at the bottom of its garden. There are lough views from some of the rooms, and the restaurant features local seafood.
Scarista House
Isle of Harris
The sea may be a tad frosty from the three-mile stretch of sand in front of this Isle of Harris hotel, but it’s gloriously remote and crowd free. Try your hand at sea sports on the island, including surfing, kayaking and sailing.
Artist Residence Brighton
Brighton
For somewhere that encapsulates the spirit of bohemian Brighton, look no further than this mural-bedaubed hotel, with views to pebbles and pier. There’s a fun atmosphere, with cocktails and ping-pong as well as sea views and street art.
The Pig on the Beach
Studland
Robin Hutson’s litter of Pig hotels is known for its foodie credentials, but in this one the specials on the menu come with a sea view. A path leads down to Studland Bay and the hotel’s beach hut; spa cabins look on to the waves.
The Ship Inn
Elie
With its own cricket team and a pitch on the beach a stone’s throw away, this Scottish pub looking out across the Firth of Forth is pretty unique. Games are tide dependent but the bay views from nautical rooms should bowl you over all the time.
St Aidan Hotel & Bistro – Seahouses
Seahouses
The day starts with breakfast in sight of golden beaches and Bamburgh Castle. Then you can take a boat trip to see puffins on the Farne Islands, hike along the coast, and use the binoculars in the rooms to scan harbour and horizon.
Gwesty Cymru
Aberystwyth
Room 6 is the one to book for a bath with a sea view at this hotel overlooking the Victorian promenade and Cardigan Bay. If you visit in winter, take a seat on the lawn and watch the starlings return to roost under the pier at sunset.
2020 Editor's Choice Seaside Hotels
Editor’s Choice Seaside Hotels
Soar Mill Cove Hotel
Salcombe
It’s all about the sublime seaside setting at Keith Makepeace’s family-centric, dog-friendly hotel with ‘amazing views to take your breath away’.
Talland Bay Hotel
Talland-by-Looe
It feels a bit as if you’ve fallen down Alice’s rabbit hole, at this whimsical, dog-friendly hotel with a ‘spectacular bay setting’ by the Coast Path.
Romney Bay House
New Romney
With a superb sea view amid the elemental landscape of Romney Marsh, haunt of both writers and smugglers, this 1920s mansion was built by Clough Williams-Ellis.
The Blakeney Hotel
Holt
On the quayside overlooking the estuary and salt marshes, in the luminous landscape of north Norfolk, Emma Stannard’s ‘lovely, comfortable’, child-friendly hotel gets another thumbs-up from a trusted reader.
Porth Tocyn Hotel
Abersoch
‘I would love to keep it to myself, but I thought I should share the good news.
Rathmullan House
Rathmullan
Built for a bishop in about 1760, Rathmullan House has been a beacon of Donegal hospitality since the early ’60s.
Tresanton
St Mawes
Tumbling down cliffs overlooking Falmouth Bay, Olga Polizzi’s glowing white Tresanton shows how to put style into a family-friendly seaside hotel – at a price.
The Pierhouse
Port Appin
Situated ‘well off the beaten track’, this former home of a piermaster is a ‘relaxed and friendly’ lochside bolt-hole, known for its seafood restaurant.
The Royal Hotel
Ventnor
Lawns run down to the pool in sub-tropical gardens ‘which, with their climbing geraniums, are magnificent’ at this cliff-top hotel overlooking the esplanade.
The Gallivant – Camber
Camber
A trusted reviewer had a ‘great stay’ in 2020 at this ‘very welcoming’ restaurant-with-rooms, a skimming stone’s throw from the dunes of Camber Sands.
Seaside Hotel of the Year 2019 (Cesar Winner)
Editor’s Choice Seaside Hotels
The Nare
Veryan-in-Roseland
‘The Nare’s description of itself as “the country house hotel by the sea” sums it up nicely.
2019 Editor's Choice Seaside Hotels
Editor’s Choice Seaside Hotels
The White Horse
Brancaster Staithe
There are Brancaster oysters and beer- battered cod on the bar menu at this family-run inn with views across the salt marshes to the sea. Close by are miles of unspoilt honey-hued sandy beaches, perfect for kite-surfing.
Trefeddian Hotel
Aberdovey
A hotel for family holidays, not boutique or trendy, but relaxed, with the beach just across the road, sea-facing lounges, packed lunches to order, children’s supper, tea on the terrace, a putting green, and good, old-fashioned hospitality.
Cary Arms & Spa
Babbacombe
You can arrive by sea and moor at this secluded hotel, which clings to the cliffs above the Teign estuary. Beach huts in tropical coastal gardens have wall-to-wall glass doors, a sunbathing deck, views across Lyme Bay.
Hell Bay Hotel
Bryher
Outside, calm protected beaches and dreamy views of outlying islets. Inside, rooms with a breezy New England style, an acclaimed collection of Cornish art and a menu highlighting gloriously fresh produce from the Isles of Scilly. Its crab shack is a popular summer fixture.
Argyll Hotel
Isle of Iona
The best tables in the sun lounge gaze across the water to Mull at this owner-run hotel occupying a row of crofters’ cottages. Menus embrace locally caught fish, hand-creeled langoustines, crab and lobster, organic garden produce.
Tresanton
St Mawes
All bedrooms have views across Falmouth Bay to St Anthony’s lighthouse, at Olga Polizzi’s relaxed but stylish hotel. You can sail aboard a vintage yacht or just hang out in the Beach Club, lunch on oysters or a crab sandwich with champagne.
Artist Residence Brighton
Brighton
From sea-view balcony rooms to the basement Bunkhouse and ‘Below Deck’, this Regency seafront hotel is as cool and quirky as Brighton itself. Breakfast in The Set includes scrambled rare-breed Cacklebean eggs with local smoked mackerel.
The Seaside Boarding House
Burton Bradstock
On Chesil Beach, drawing inspiration from Edward Hopper’s Cape Cod, this is a hip but laid-back operation. All bedrooms have a sea view. You can eat on the terrace – crab sandwiches, home-made ices, Dorset cream tea.
The George Hotel & Beach Club
Yarmouth
On a shingle beach lapped by the waves, with sea-facing conservatory restaurant and terrace, this smart Guide newcomer occupies a historic town house between castle and pier. Many rooms have Solent or harbour views.
Treglos Hotel
Padstow
There is a real holiday vibe at this family- run, family-friendly hotel, with many sea- facing bedrooms, golf course, spa, partner surf school (‘coasteering’, kayaking, stand- up paddleboarding), and seafood platter lunches served on the deck.
2018 Editor's Choice Seaside Hotels
Editor’s Choice Seaside Hotels
The Nare
Veryan-in-Roseland
‘The Nare’s description of itself as “the country house hotel by the sea” sums it up nicely.
Cary Arms & Spa
Babbacombe
Queen Victoria thought of Italy as she viewed the ‘red cliffs and rocks and wooded hills’ that surround pebbly Babbacombe Bay, and for la dolce vita look no further than this spa hotel.
The Blakeney Hotel
Holt
On the quayside overlooking the estuary and salt marshes, in the luminous landscape of north Norfolk, Emma Stannard’s ‘lovely, comfortable’, child-friendly hotel gets another thumbs-up from a trusted reader.
Porth Tocyn Hotel
Abersoch
‘I would love to keep it to myself, but I thought I should share the good news.
The White House
Herm
With no cars, and white sandy beaches, this tiny island paradise has just one hotel.
Tresanton
St Mawes
Tumbling down cliffs overlooking Falmouth Bay, Olga Polizzi’s glowing white Tresanton shows how to put style into a family-friendly seaside hotel – at a price.
The Beach
Bude
You can drink a cocktail on the sun terrace at Susie and Will Daniel’s stay-and-play youthful, family-friendly hotel, and see when surf’s up on Summerleaze Beach below.
The Pig on the Beach
Studland
A higgledy-piggledy 19th-century marine villa with a jumble of towers and gables gazes across Studland Bay to the chalk stacks of Old Harry Rocks.
The Seaside Boarding House
Burton Bradstock
Order a crab sandwich on the terrace, gaze out over Lyme Bay from this white-painted hotel above Chesil Beach, and you can half imagine you’re in Edward Hopper’s Cape Cod.
The Idle Rocks
St Mawes
Dinghies skim beneath the 150-foot terrace of Karen and David Richards’s hotel, in an enviable position overlooking the Fal estuary in a fishing village on the Roseland peninsula.
2017 Editor's Choice Seaside Hotels
Editor’s Choice Seaside Hotels
Soar Mill Cove Hotel
Salcombe
It’s all about the sublime seaside setting at Keith Makepeace’s family-centric, dog-friendly hotel with ‘amazing views to take your breath away’.
The Nare
Veryan-in-Roseland
‘The Nare’s description of itself as “the country house hotel by the sea” sums it up nicely.
Romney Bay House
New Romney
With a superb sea view amid the elemental landscape of Romney Marsh, haunt of both writers and smugglers, this 1920s mansion was built by Clough Williams-Ellis.
The White Horse
Brancaster Staithe
You can dine in the conservatory or alfresco on the terrace at the Nye family’s hotel, and gaze across tidal salt marshes to the sea that supplied what is on your plate.
Cary Arms & Spa
Babbacombe
Queen Victoria thought of Italy as she viewed the ‘red cliffs and rocks and wooded hills’ that surround pebbly Babbacombe Bay, and for la dolce vita look no further than this spa hotel.
driftwood hotel
Porthscatho
Fiona and Paul Robinson’s New England-inspired hotel, with ‘magnificent views over Gerrans Bay’, ticked all the boxes for a reader this year, from the ‘wonderful people’ to ‘food that is too good to be true’.
The White House
Herm
With no cars, and white sandy beaches, this tiny island paradise has just one hotel.
The Old Coastguard
Penzance
‘Perfection – time seems to slow down the moment you enter,’ says one trusted reviewer of this contemporary take on a traditional coastal inn, which exudes a wonderfully relaxed and cheerful atmosphere.
The Pig on the Beach
Studland
A higgledy-piggledy 19th-century marine villa with a jumble of towers and gables gazes across Studland Bay to the chalk stacks of Old Harry Rocks.
The Idle Rocks
St Mawes
Dinghies skim beneath the 150-foot terrace of Karen and David Richards’s hotel, in an enviable position overlooking the Fal estuary in a fishing village on the Roseland peninsula.
Hotels chosen in 2016
Editor’s Choice Seaside Hotels
Hell Bay Hotel
Bryher
New England meets Newquay at the UK’s most westerly hotel, a stylish coastal retreat 30 miles from the Cornish mainland, on the smallest of the inhabited Isles of Scilly.
The Colonsay
Isle of Colonsay
The island’s only hotel is set on a hillside above the harbour, and has sweeping views across the bay to Jura.
The Henley
Bigbury-on-Sea
‘The views are stunning’ from Martyn Scarterfield and Petra Lampe’s Edwardian holiday cottage-turned-B&B, which gazes over the Avon estuary to Burgh Island.
Dunvalanree in Carradale
CARRADALE
Alyson and Alan Milstead’s restaurant-with-rooms is ‘a lovely place, excellent for all its quirkiness,’ says a regular Guide reader in 2017.
