‘The little things really matter’ at this ‘friendly' hotel, in a row of cottages opposite the thatched church in a village of honey-stone houses.

Stone House closed down at the end of January 2018.

‘Here’s a taste of Cotswold heritage: mullioned windows, beamed ceilings, flagstone floors, the sweet smell of wood smoke.’

The accolades continue as Clive James and David Stott celebrate their 30th year at their well-liked restaurant-with-rooms – ‘a very special place’ – at the foot of the South Downs national park.

The day is one long round of pleasure at this ‘luxurious but unstuffy’ Edwardian country house beneath the South Downs, where classic lawn sports and garden games make jolly the ‘gorgeous, well-maintained’ grounds.

In a pretty hamlet close to Goodwood, this former bakery and village store is run as a B&B by ‘accommodating, thoughtful hosts’ Heather and Patrick Birchenough.

The first in the parcel of Pigs, sunning itself in the New Forest, this ‘relaxed, gorgeously rustic’ hotel remains a favourite of Guide readers.

‘Our stay was close to perfect. It was like spending a weekend at a country house where the hostess has impeccable taste and is a first-rate cook. All this at an outstandingly reasonable price, in an interesting and accessible corner of Kent.’

A survivor from a more elegant age, this family-friendly Victorian hotel grandly stands on the seafront.

Pull into this converted train station and take up residence in one of the refurbished Pullman carriages on the disused tracks: ‘quirky and charming’, this is a B&B with a difference.

Coast and countryside flavour this restaurant-with-rooms between Chichester harbour and the South Downs national park – look out for shore-harvested sea buckthorn and foraged cèpes and chanterelles on the modern menus.

‘An agreeable, solidly comfortable base for exploring the area’, Sam and Janet Bakose’s updated 18th-century inn sits off the A272 in the South Downs national park.

Hats off to Tobias Feilke, owner of this characterful B&B on the harbour of an old port town at the mouth of the Solent.

Lee and Katie Williams run their restaurant-with-rooms in a Grade II listed Regency building close to the antique shops and historic sites in a bustling, riverside market town.

Come in to ‘a lovely, warm atmosphere and a good mood’ at Brendan McDonagh’s town-centre B&B, in a pretty cul-de-sac behind the High Street.

‘Sumptuous’ inside and out, Ruth and Samantha Trinder’s refined hotel on the River Thames is in a ‘tranquil spot’ that belies its easy connection to the scramble and dash of London.

On the edge of Pagham Harbour nature reserve, this whitewashed restaurant-with-rooms is ‘a wonderfully tranquil, timeless, tucked-away sort of place’.

With a lily-scented terrace in the summer and a log fire in the winter, all is ‘enchanting’ at this ‘elegant, comfortable’ Georgian manor house.

Think of anything you might want from a luxury hotel – ‘friendly, professional staff’, ‘well-appointed bedrooms’, ‘delightful’ public spaces, a ‘memorable’ breakfast with peerless granola.

‘Extraordinary light’ surrounds this ‘characterful B&B’ in a decommissioned lighthouse.

‘However you look at it, it’s truly a delight.’

‘What makes this 16th-century freehouse so special is the atmosphere: informal and friendly, yet 100% professional.’

A Pig with pedigree, the second of Robin Hutson’s sounder of swine, this Georgian house set into the medieval town wall has been given the hotel group’s signature shabby-chic treatment by designer Judy Hutson.

In a ‘stunning’ location on the edge of a village in the South Downs, Amanda and William Godman’s ‘stylish’ B&B occupies two handsomely rough-hewn, flint-and-brick buildings on a tranquil courtyard.