With rooms in thatched dovecotes, a shepherd’s hut and an ‘eccentric’ Victorian villa, Robin Hutson’s ‘whimsical’ seaside hotel is ‘wonderfully located’ and ‘very welcoming’. The main house, ‘a Gothic blend of Hansel and Gretel and Hammer House of Horror’, displays the group’s trademark artfully mismatched interiors: squashy sofas, stuffed birds, old portraits, red brocade lamps, a large coat of arms – a movie prop from Pirates of the Caribbean. The ‘comfy’ bedrooms range from ‘quite snug but beautifully designed’, to generous, with a super-king-size bed and freestanding in-room bath, via eaves rooms that suit a family. One contains a 17th-century woodcarving from a Portuguese palace. All have a monsoon shower, Roberts radio and ‘the best-stocked minibar I’ve ever encountered’. Staff are ‘attentive and charming’. In the relaxed conservatory restaurant, the locally sourced and home-grown 25-mile menu includes the likes of Fowey River mussels, Purbeck sirloin steak, pollack with Portland crab sauce. Wood-fired flatbreads are served on the terrace, spa treatments in a garden hut, sea views to Old Harry Rocks from the ‘lovely grounds’. ‘We will go back.’ (J and GM, IB, and others)