California beach motel meets the great British coast in ‘plenty of good spirit’ at Harry Cragoe’s ‘fun, likeable’ restaurant with rooms across the dunes from Camber Sands. The place lives up to its name, and jaunty exploration is encouraged: beach bags await in the bedrooms; there are flip-flops to borrow – a walk on the ‘seemingly endless sandy beach’ is ‘one of the hotel’s great assets’. Hot drinks and cake are laid out for a teatime return; at any time, raid the Larder of Guilty Pleasures, the in-house tuck shop stocked with everything from popcorn to champagne. Snug or with space to spread out, bedrooms have a breezy coastal air (cool hues, pale sanded floors); the best open on to a semi-private deck leading to the landscaped coastal garden. ‘Ours had a comfy bed with crisp linen; a huge bathtub in the bathroom. There were books, a transistor radio, plenty of local information.’ The Gallivant’s ‘fifteen-mile menu’ features the best seasonal and local produce in dishes such as smoked haddock, Rye bay cockles, spring onion, curried mayo. At breakfast, honey and apple juice are local; granola bars, pastries and sausages are all home made.