This quintessential English country house with spa, pools, kids' club, elegant bedrooms and fun treehouses hits all the right luxurious notes for a romantic or family stay. 'Outstanding in its luxury,' writes a happy reader. Tennis, golf, croquet, gardens and woodland – plus a path to the beach – mean that there's no need to leave this five-star cocoon. Relax in one of the lounges with their old-school elegance or around the pool in the light-flooded spa. There is also an outdoor pool. Main house bedrooms are lightly traditional – soft colours, marble bathrooms – with parkland views, many with balcony or terrace. Suites are more contemporary while the treehouses are sharply modern, and 'out of this world' with 'wonderful forest views, a hot tub on the balcony, stocked kitchenette and breakfast hamper that appeared through a chute in the kitchen'. 'Wonderful food' is served in the glass-roofed Dining Room for traditional fine dining such as Thai lobster curry or rib-eye on the bone (vegetarian, too), and the breezier Kitchen for gourmet burgers and pizzas. Staff were 'plentiful, courteous and well trained'. (Anthony Bradbury, VS, and others)