A New Forest bolt-hole, this country house hotel has an easy glamour, romantic and family-friendly rooms, heart-warming Italian food and top-notch spa.

A charming oasis, Clive and Luidmila's lovingly restored 300-year-old house is tucked away in a small town of narrow, winding streets, within easy reach of the cities of Mdina and Valletta.

With 'nothing in between to Canada', this pretty blue-and-white weatherboarded farmhouse-turned-hotel which sits above a secluded cove on Bryher's rugged west-facing coast is a 'very special and distinctive place', say guests.

Leave the fuss and fret of the AI(M) at Scotch Corner to reconnect with the land at this idyllic hotel, centred on a Georgian coach house amid gardens, parkland and woodland.

With their background in TV and film, Sara Curran and Peter Sussman are experts in presentation. Since taking over in April 2022, they have hung artworks collected on their travels, refreshed the beautiful interiors, and added a Michelin-recommended brasserie to their 'exceptional hotel'.

In a Tudor manor house in the Cotswolds just across from Cheltenham Racecourse, this hotel with spa and 90 acres of grounds is both family and dog-friendly.

There is a clever mix of the traditional and modern at this Victorian coaching inn with contemporary main-house, poolside and spa suites, inventive cooking in the restaurant, and an all-year heated outdoor pool.

The Chambers family run their unpretentious, family-friendly hotel in a 19th-century house set in expansive grounds a short stroll uphill from the boats in the harbour.

Much altered since it was begun in 1695, the Cunliffe-Lister family's neo-Gothic, castellated fantasy castle is 'a very special place, grand and imposing', in 'simply glorious' pleasure grounds and parkland.

The actor Colin Firth is a fan of 'the hospitality, the food, the comfort of the rooms', not to mention the location at this sprawling, cliff-top Edwardian house.

A 'sprawling, traditional building in a beautiful setting' at the tip of Windermere, this family and dog-friendly hotel has easy access to lake-based activities as well as a spa.

A favourite hangout of the England football team, the former home of Lord Louis Mountbatten is 'well-run', with contemporary bedrooms, cosseting suites, a good choice of eating and drinking spaces, and a magnificent spa.

Set on a 300-acre working farm, this legendary Irish country-house hotel has grown from being a restaurant with rooms that is passionate about locally sourced food into a thriving business, with cookery school, café and arts venue.

Once a retreat for Lord Beaverbrook, this Victorian mansion, filled with fascinating memorabilia, is home to chic contemporary bedrooms, a fine-dining restaurant, Japanese grill, library, cinema and spa.

There is a simple sophistication about both the interiors and the menus at this Georgian rectory, where bedrooms have contemporary and period furniture and subtle paint shades, and modern dishes tick the boxes for foodies.

In sumptuous gardens high above the sea, this small luxury hotel has superb views across the Gulf of Valinco.

The Milsom family's Victorian country house hotel in Dedham Vale, in the heart of Constable country, has been subtly rebranded with the addition of a spa by the pool house.

There are 'great views of the Camel Estuary' from this 1920s, family-friendly hotel that is 'virtually on the famous golf course'.

Charles II might not recognise his old royal hunting lodge today but, as the father of at least 11 children and a great lover of his spaniels, the Merry Monarch would enjoy the dog-friendly, inclusive ethos.

'A lovely hotel in a beautiful setting'; 'calm and quiet'. One of the Guide's best-loved hotels, the 'beautiful, old bastide', outside a delightful small town below the Massif de la Sainte Baume, stands in a large walled garden with swimming pool and fountain.

An iconic white Victorian hotel on a cliff-top is today a dog- and family-friendly hotel with spa, outdoor pool, informal bar dining, and more ambitious cooking in the Atlantic View restaurant.

'Treehouses, boathouses and shepherds' huts are scattered around 70 acres of glorious grounds on the Consall Hall Estate at this deconstructed, dog-friendly hotel.