Here is an exemplary hotel, according to a discerning Guide Reader, ‘elegant and comfortable’, it has ‘an air of confidence’ that sets guests at ease.

Since Chris Staines and Silvana Bandini bought The Ollerod 18 months ago, its transformation into a ‘restaurant-led’ establishment has continued apace.

Flower decked without, welcoming within, this 'excellent' village pub, contrived from three former miners’ cottages, is liked by readers flying out of nearby Bristol Airport.

Built into a hillside on a tidal island, this sleek, white, concrete hotel has a seagoing aspect. Built in 1929 for a wealthy industrialist, it hosted the likes of Nancy Cunard, Noël Coward and Josephine Baker.

'Such a romantic spot.’ Deep in the Nadder valley, amid narrow country lanes that are ‘a pleasure to get lost in’, this 17th-century house is owned by Grahame and Prue Senior and Simon and Charlotte Greenwood.

Elizabeth Barrett (not yet Browning) would have known this ‘charming, traditional' white stucco seafront hotel when she moved to Sidmouth in 1832 for the balmy climate.

There is much to fire the young imagination at this 17th-century manor house above Chesil beach, the setting for John Meade Falkner’s 1898 tale of smuggling, Moonfleet.

‘An eligible, self-contained gentleman’s residence, very unique. . . with every modern convenience. . .’ So Kenneth Graham describes Toad Hall, which he modelled on this Victorian mansion, a baroque extravaganza with sumptuous interiors, overlooking the Fowey estuary.

‘Perched high on the Lizard cliffs with views out to sea and the sound of waves at night, the setting could not be more romantic.’

There are ‘no airs and graces’ at this Georgian rectory-cum-hotel in the gentle South Hams countryside between Dartmoor and the South Devon coast.

Personal attention from the owners won high praise from readers this year, after a stay at this restaurant-with-rooms overlooking Blackmore Vale.

‘This place has a lot going for it.' A trusted reader commends this country house hotel and spa, ‘beautifully located’, on the edge of Dartmoor national park.

In ‘a wonderful cliff-top location’, this ‘large white edifice above Chesil Beach’ is run as a restaurant-with-rooms by Mary-Lou Sturridge and Tony Mackintosh, late of London’s Groucho Club.

‘Forget overcrowded St Ives – there’s a real treat of a stay in Penzance.’ Quirky character fills the ‘beautifully restored’ brick-and-granite former 18th-century former admiral’s house, but ‘this inviting boutique hotel is all about the hostess, Susan Stuart'.

It promises ‘luxury for the curious', and Christa and Ian Taylor’s boutique hotel on a grand neoclassical street does not disappoint.

Bird’s-eye views of the Lizard peninsula, little luxuries and a relaxed air turn this cliff-top hotel into a stress-busting retreat.

‘As soon as you pull up, a besuited employee emerges, bags are lifted, car keys handed over for valet parking.’ Inspectors were impressed by a stay at this luxury hotel and 'superb' spa.

Surf’s up! Above Fistral Beach, the Armstrong family’s child- and dog-friendly hotel overlooks one of Cornwall’s surfing hotspots.

‘We will stay there again soon – if I can afford it,’ wrote a reader after a first visit to this country house hotel (Relais & Châteaux) last year. Things must be going well – he's been back, to find everything ‘pretty faultless’.

People get hooked on Adam Fox-Edwards's country sports hotel close to Dartmoor, with its tackle shop in an original cock-fighting pit, ghillies for hire, and 20 miles of fishing on the Tamar and tributaries.

‘One of our favourite hotels,’ enthuses a reader about Teresa and Kevin O’Sullivan’s quirky and luxurious cliff-top hideaway in this south Cornish seaside hamlet.

In ‘an amazing situation' amid 'bleak and beautiful Dartmoor', Chris Daly’s 18th-century manor house-turned-hotel is ‘truly special’ with 'lovely staff', say Guide readers.

'We found seats on the attractive terrace' with 'views across St Mawes harbour to Falmouth Bay' reports a lunchtime visitor to Caroline and David Richards’s 'superb’ hotel.

You can eat by a blazing fire, or alfresco in a leafy garden overlooked by hilltop Dunster Castle, at Nigel and Anne Way’s historic hotel.