A horse-drawn carriage brings guests to this rose-covered, 16th-century farmhouse on a car-free island. Regular readers described it as ‘paradise’, following an ‘umpteenth visit’ this year. The hotel ‘turns on the personality of its owner’, Elizabeth Perrée, says one who knows it well. ‘Elizabeth is as charming and helpful as ever,’ says another. By its own admission the hotel occupies ‘a time warp of simplicity’. ‘Delightful’ bedrooms, in main house and surrounding cottages, are quaintly, individually styled. ‘The chef continues to delight us with excellent food,’ served in the old-fashioned dining room, or alfresco. Typical dishes: roasted scallops with garlic butter; veal with Madeira sauce and wild mushrooms; lobster thermidor. With no TV and limited Wi-Fi, people come to read (and write), to watch the cormorants and puffins, to take sightseeing and fishing boat trips. There is no swimming pool – but no swimming pool could compare with a dip in the Venus rock pool. On a rainy day, ‘the staff were very helpful… Not only did they dry our things but also washed and ironed them as appropriate.’ (John Barnes, RC)