Hotels by the sea
Soar Mill Cove Hotel - 'Stay Longer Save more' Special Offer
Salcombe
Binoculars are supplied for dolphin- spotting at this much-loved, family- friendly hotel. Bedrooms have glass doors leading to patio or balcony, views of cove and coastal gardens, or National Trust countryside. Wild-flower walks and beach days beckon.
Talland Bay Hotel - Two Night Weekend Break Special Offer
Talland-by-Looe
There is such a spirit of caprice about this cliff-top hotel, with its playful décor, its sub-tropical gardens filled with whimsical sculptures. A place for leisure and pleasure, with sea views from many bedrooms, alfresco dining on the terrace.
Knockinaam Lodge - 'Refurb Rates' Special Offer
Portpatrick
Where the road ends and the Irish Sea begins, this former Victorian hunting lodge with a private cove is secluded, unapologetically traditional and rich in comforts and good food.
La Sablonnerie - Suite Upgrade Special Offer
Little Sark
A horse-drawn carriage conveys you over a dramatic, narrow isthmus 80 metres above the sea to this 17th-century farmhouse on a tiny island with no airstrip, no tarmac road, and no cars.
The Nare - 'Four Nights of Romance' Special Offer
Veryan-in-Roseland
‘A year spent without a visit to The Nare is a year wasted,’ writes a returning guest of this perennially popular country house hotel overlooking the sands of Carne Bay.
Bedruthan Hotel and Spa - Christmas Breaks Special Offer
Mawgan Porth
Seen through walls of windows, the sea is a huge presence at this family-run hotel ‘in a fabulous location’ on the cliffs above a surfers’ beach.
The Atlantic Hotel - Celebration Gourmet Break Special Offer
St Brelade
Ocean views are on show through the floor-to-ceiling windows from some of the rooms at this hotel, on a headland above St Ouen's Bay.
Watersmeet - Rambler's Package Special Offer
Woolacombe
‘The location is stunning, with views of the Devon coast with its sandy beaches and tumbled rocks,’ writes a reader delighted by this family-friendly hotel, promoted from the Shortlist this year.
Titchwell Manor - Complimentary Pre-Dinner Cocktail Special Offer
Brancaster
With views over meadows and marshes to the sea, this hotel with award-winning dining bedazzles with its vibrant interiors within the walls of a Victorian farmhouse.
The White Horse - Three Nights for the Price of Two Special Offer
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 - Early Season by the Coast Special Offer
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.
Blue Hayes - Pre-Easter Break 25% Discount Special Offer
St Ives
After a day browsing the galleries of this buzzy, arty town, you can escape the crowds to sit serenely sipping cocktails in the sub-tropical gardens at Malcolm Herring’s small hotel.
Seaham Hall - 'Dine & Stay' Special Offer
Seaham
Garden suites with hot tubs, a state-of-the-art spa, brightly coloured sofas under gleaming chandeliers . . . this country house hotel offers luxury with a contemporary edge.
The Old Coastguard - Winter Escape Special Offer
Penzance
‘My favourite hotel anywhere in the world,’ writes a reader, of this welcoming pub-with-rooms in an enchanting fishing village.
The Scarlet - 'Essence of Scarlet' Special Offer from £225 per night
Mawgan Porth
Eco values as well as enjoyment are fundamental to this cliff-top hotel, with sea thrift-covered roof, sweeping curves, reed-filtered pool and walls of windows to soak up the light and the seascape.
Cary Arms & Spa - Three Nights for the Price of Two Special Offer
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.
Shieldaig Lodge - Food Lovers Package Special Offer
Gairloch
Field-sports fans and whisky aficionados beat a path to this Victorian hunting lodge, in a ‘glorious location’ on a vast wooded estate by Loch Gairloch.
Hotel Meudon - Dinner-inclusive Winter Break Special Offer
Falmouth
Meandering down to a private beach, glorious subtropical gardens enfold this secluded Victorian mansion.
From £69 per night
Polurrian on the Lizard - Autumn Special Offer
Mullion
While some of us bring home a fridge magnet or a Cornishware mug, businessman Andrew Long has gone one better and bought a hotel.
The Manor Town House - New Year Festivities and Fireworks Special Offer
Fishguard
Behind Helen and Chris Sheldon’s pastel blue-painted B&B is a secluded garden terrace with ‘spectacular’ views over Lower Town harbour and across Cardigan Bay.
Lewinnick Lodge - Three Nights for the Price of Two Special Offer
Newquay
On the craggy Pentire headland, this seaside-chic hotel looking north along the Cornish coast dispenses ‘fabulous’ views and the soothing Atlantic sounds.
Knockderry House Hotel - Two Night Mini-Break Special Offer
Helensburgh
‘Scottish baronial at its best: all towers and turrets’, Beth and Murdo Macleod’s ‘very well-organised’, dog-friendly hotel stands in manicured lawns by the shores of Loch Long.
The Blakeney Hotel
Holt
Kids enjoy crabbing and mud, glorious mud, on the quay at this well-run hotel. Older guests prefer local crab in a sandwich with chilled Picpoul de Pinet. All love north Norfolk’s unspoilt beaches, the indoor pool, seal trips to Blakeney Point.
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.
The Pier at Harwich
Harwich
Cranes, container ships, Holland-bound ferries . . . The views from this quayside Victorian hotel with its striking iron-lace balcony overlooking the Stour and Orwell estuaries, are ocean-going, stirring, never dull.
Morston Hall
Holt
Birdwatchers and bon vivants beat a path to Tracy and Galton Blackiston’s Michelin-starred restaurant-with-rooms in a flint farmhouse with Blakeney nature reserve on the doorstep.
The Seafood Restaurant
Padstow
If you can't get enough of the freshest of seafood at this restaurant-with-rooms, you can learn to prepare your own lobster for grilling and the perfect hollandaise sauce at Rick Stein's cookery school across the road.
Driftwood Hotel
Porthscatho
‘A very nice hotel with its own private beach, secluded and quiet,’ writes a reader of this cliff-top hotel in gardens overlooking Gerrans Bay.
Star Castle
St Mary's
You can sit on the ramparts and watch for puffins, seals and invading armadas over a cream tea at this Elizabethan artillery castle and family-run hotel within star-shaped walls.
Porth Tocyn Hotel
Abersoch
The first generation of children to stay at this family-run hotel will be grandparents or great-grandparents now, but the timeless beauty of the view across Cardigan Bay, the fun of a safe sandy beach, great food and warm hospitality are as they ever were.
Cnapan
Newport
With a home-from-home ambience, this Georgian B&B on Newport’s main street is an ideal base from which to explore the Pembrokeshire Coast national park.
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.
La Fregate
St Peter Port
High on the clifftop above St Peter Port, this town house hotel has enviable views over the harbour and neighbouring islands, sleek bedrooms and an established reputation for its food.
Gregans Castle Hotel
Ballyvaughan
It may not be a castle but this rambling 18th-century manor house, wrapped in gardens and with views over the otherworldly karst landscape of the Burren, has its own romantic charm.
Rathmullan House
Rathmullan
Overlooking the long sea arm of Lough Swilly, this Georgian house in wooded grounds on the Wild Atlantic Way, is family-run and family-friendly. There are play facilities, an indoor pool, a choice of dining options, a beach at the end of the garden.
Scarista House
Isle of Harris
The long drive is worth it to this edge-of-the-world location, where a Georgian manse, with pretty, traditional rooms and superb food, overlooks a long sandy beach.
Kinloch Lodge
Isle of Skye
It has been an anniversary year at Lord and Lady Macdonald’s former hunting lodge ‘in a beautiful position’ on the shores of Loch Na Dal, with views to the Cuillin mountains.
Tresanton
St Mawes
Olga Polizzi’s labour of love has been contrived from a former yacht club and fishermen’s cottages to create a harmonious whole. Works of Cornish art hang in sea- facing bedrooms. Dine alfresco, enjoy the beach club, sail on a vintage yacht.
Cley Windmill
Holt
‘In an idyllic spot’, amid 'reed beds on the former quayside on the River Glaven’, this five-storey, 19th-century tower mill is home to an unusual B&B.
Eddrachilles Hotel
Scourie
Take a drive on the wild side via the North Coast 500 to this small private hotel, a former Church of Scotland manse in a landscape of remote and rugged beauty overlooking Badcall Bay.
Hotels by the sea
British weather aside, the summer is in full swing, and it’s the perfect time to head to the seaside. With bucket and spade in hand, whether you’re looking for a family holiday or a romantic mini break, British beach hotels have a reputation for historic charm and the most spectacular scenery across England, Scotland and Wales.
The variety of hotels is something we often talk about – you hear seaside and it’s so often simply connected with family holidays. Of course, there are few places as charming or as wholesome as our beaches to take children to enjoy the summer (or indeed a bracing walk in the winter), but there’s also a wealth of opportunity for a luxurious or romantic break.
Chewton Glen, the famed spa hotel in New Milton for example, has a glowing reputation as part of the Relais & Châteaux collection for wonderful food, pristine surroundings and a sophisticated experience. With a view to counter all others, on the other hand, Soar Mill Cove Hotel, just outside the seaside town of Salcombe, has been wowing visitors for decades, nestled as it is into a dip in a valley that meanders down to a quiet beach – perfect for a quiet swim if you dare.
In Scotland, the rugged beauty of the landscape is really something that belongs in storybooks. A favourite location amongst hikers and those seeking adventure, the likes of Romney Bay House, surrounded by shingle beaches and marshland is a delight for the senses. Alternatively, the Channel Islands has a wealth of spectacular escapism to offer, including La Sablonnerie, which we have visited time and again, in love as we are with the 16th-century farmhouse that has been operating as a hotel since 1948.
This is a selection of all of our hotels by the sea.