‘Within lovely walking distance’ of Chatsworth House, the Duke of Devonshire’s ‘very nice hotel’ continues to please.

‘It’s up there with the top hotels we’ve stayed at,’ writes a reader this year of Sue and James Murray’s romantic rebuild of a Jacobean manor house, surrounded by parkland.

Once known for its celebrity shenanigans, this west London bolthole, in two neo-classical mansions, is ‘the opposite of bland’.

‘Superb’, ‘excellent’, ‘impressive’, ‘delightful’ – on the edge of the New Forest, this model of a country house hotel and spa is on top form, having celebrated its golden anniversary.

‘Everything you’d expect from a really good hotel is here,’ writes a trusted Guide correspondent in 2017, fresh from celebrating the holidays at the Francis family’s characterful hotel above Hugh Town.

Chris and Gunna Chown’s restaurant-with-rooms, in a Grade II* listed Georgian country house on the remote Lleyn peninsula, enchants visitors old and new.

On a sheltered cove on the wildly scenic Galloway coast, Sian and David Ibbotson’s stone hunting lodge is liked for its ‘tranquil setting’, its ‘professional, friendly, caring’ staff, and its fine collection of single malts.

In woodland and extensive formal gardens, the Bowe family’s ‘beautiful’ Regency-style mansion has been providing ‘prompt and attentive service’ for more than 35 years.

For ‘exceptional service’, a scandalous history, and rich views of the Thames, you’d be hard pressed to better this extensively restored Italianate mansion.

In a ‘wonderful position right by the water’, this ‘beautifully decorated’ hotel is ‘superbly run’, by ‘great staff’, in a ‘hospitable spirit’.

‘Nothing compares to this special place,’ says a Guide reader in 2017 after a return visit to the Cunliffe family’s glamorous country house hotel.

A Victorian remodelling of an 18th-century inn, this stone mansion stands tall in a ‘beautiful situation’, with lawns stretching to the loch, and views of Ben Nevis.

At dusk, the lights come on over Brighton Pier – a view best taken in, perhaps, from a freestanding bath by floor-to-ceiling windows in the bedrooms of this stylish, boutique hotel.

Overlooking Durham’s heritage coast, this Georgian mansion, all sea views and sofas for sinking into, is ‘a wonderful place, combining luxury and style with a friendly, relaxed approach’.

‘Old-fashioned in the best way’, the Harrison family’s ‘lovely, eclectic guest house’ on the shores of Loch Ewe is run by ‘friendly, informative hosts who make a real effort to ensure every guest is taken care of’.

‘From the excellent service, decor and food to the exceptional attention to detail, they’ve certainly got it right.’

Step out of your yacht, if you have it, and on to the private jetty at Lana de Savary’s cliff-face hotel, on a ‘fabulously secluded’ cove; the rest of us will descend the winding road and admire the wide vista over the Teign estuary.

Approached by a drive through parkland, Frances Meeres Young’s upmarket B&B, in an 18th-century coach house, is surrounded by gardens ‘planned and tended with love and skill’.

‘A graceful spot in Suffolk countryside, this modern make-over of a 243-year-old mill surprises with its boutiquey bedrooms and ambitious dinners,’ say Guide inspectors in 2017.

‘We felt we were staying at a grand house rather than a hotel,’ say regular Guide correspondents this year of Charles Lowther and his family'’s Grade I listed ancestral home, built around a medieval pele tower and brimming with the owners’ personality.

The former home of medical pioneer Sir Joseph Lister is anything but clinical today: the modern hotel occupying this 19th-century building, steps from the top of Princes Street, is awash in rich fabrics, bold patterns and ornate mirrors.

Sweet hospitality is par for the course at Hannah McIntyre’s B&B off the High Street: mid-afternoons, the hostess supplies a spread of freshly baked treats for guests to help themselves to.

‘Perfect hosts’ Ciaran and Cheryl Maher make things personal at their Arts and Crafts B&B in the New Forest.

‘The sea views, over Saundersfoot Bay, are wonderful and exceptional’ at this family-friendly hotel, perched above a village in the Pembrokeshire Coast national park.