There is a buzzy ambience to this refurbished, child friendly, dog friendly 17th-century village pub, named after local tumuli, with restaurant, smart bedrooms and alfresco dining.

A stunning baronial-style Victorian manor house overlooking a red-deer sanctuary in the New Forest, this spa hotel with outdoor pool has been stylishly updated as an adults-only retreat with a well-regarded restaurant offering à la carte, prix fixe and vegan menus of locally sourced food.

There are magnificent views over Cardiff and across the sea to Devon from this hotel just north of the city, in a Georgian industrialist's mansion with the air of a country retreat, offering colourful contemporary bedrooms and modern cooking.

Close to the city centre, a Jacobean-style Victorian villa sitting above a manicured front garden combines with Hampton House across the road as a single, characterful hotel, with bedrooms and suites blending contemporary comfort and period style, and fine dining in the Dunstane Restaurant and Bar.

Refurbished throughout by a new owner, this Georgian coaching inn in the city's historic heart offers a good choice of comfortable bedrooms, bars and dining options.

In a village close to Bath, one of England's oldest inns offers characterful rooms and above-average pub fare.

Occupying a row of honeyed-stone 15th-century weavers' cottages, this dog-friendly hotel has an inviting locals bar, individually styled bedrooms that blend contemporary comforts with tradition, and a restaurant serving classics alongside more modern dishes.

Between town and racecourse in a conservation area close to Pittville Park, Nirav Sheth's friendly hotel is in a fine 1830s stone mansion and offers boutique-style bedrooms plus a good breakfast served in a hand-painted dining room.

Country-house luxury abounds at this child-friendly, dog-friendly hotel, a Georgian mansion in ‘well-maintained gardens a huge joy to visit’.

A neo-Gothic fantasy castle in glorious pleasure grounds and parkland, the Cunliffe-Lister family's hotel offers a taste of country-house living, with opulent interiors, spacious bedrooms and suites, estate-to-plate dining and a spa.

Chef-proprietors Guy and Brittany Manning have brought skills honed at triple-Michelin-starred Per Se in Midtown Manhattan to this thatched gastropub on the edge of Salisbury Plain, with 'stupendous' food in the bar/restaurant and garden, and stylish guest bedrooms across the road, with decking from which to watch the ducks on the River Avon.

If the Borrowers opened a hotel, it would probably be something like Nick and Charlotte Dent's Georgian farmhouse, filled with upcycled objets trouvés.

This Victorian gothic mansion might appear a little forbidding, but step inside and you are overwhelmed by a warm ambience and beautiful interiors, while some guests choose to sleep in the woods in a timber-lined 'hive' or treehouse.

Chris and Rebecca Layton have transformed this Jacobean deanery opposite the Cathedral into a wedding venue and personable restaurant with rooms, dog and family friendly by day, a gastronomic destination at night.

Thomas Hardy fans will be in their element at this local watering hole in Dorset, which was the model for 'The Sow and Acorn' in Tess of the d'Urbervilles.

Sam Mercer Nairne and his Bordeaux-born wife, Claire, have created something very special at this picturesque cottage-orné -style Georgian coaching inn on the Lansdowne's estate. The hotel, pub and anglers' dream has lovely bedrooms seamlessly blending the old and new, and French-accented, seasonal estate-to-plate menus in bar and dining room.

For bed and bard, you won’t find better than the Eden Collection’s child-friendly, dog-friendly, Georgian red-brick hotel, official partner of the RSC, right opposite the Royal Shakespeare and Swan theatres, with smart contemporary interiors, brasserie and alfresco dining.

An olde-worlde pub in a Chatsworth estate village combines with a modern brasserie, while individually styled bedrooms are spread between the inn and three cottages.

Dogs and their people receive a warm welcome at this 18th-century former coaching inn, with cosy bar and candlelit restaurant, a mix of contemporary and country-style bedrooms in the inn and converted stables, and an inventive seasonally changing menu.

Quirkiness abounds at this contemporary hotel in a remodelled Victorian mansion, decorated with witty eclecticism, featuring modish, well-equipped bedrooms and an all-day menu of modern British dishes served in the restaurant or on the terrace amid dining pavilions and fire pits.

In 'England's book town', under mighty Howgill Fells on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park, this is just the place for a drover's platter and a pint – or Korean beef, shiso and sesame with a shot of wasabi vodka.

A lovely, wisteria-swagged, 17th-century Bath stone inn, this is a gastropub with a wide choice of characterful rooms, a serious attitude to food, regular comedy nights and an irrepressible sense of fun.

Ethical sourcing and sustainability are at the heart of this organic pub with beautifully styled rooms and imaginative food featuring local and seasonal produce.

Perennial popular, professionally run but relaxed, this former coaching inn with views to the Shropshire hills is an ideal base for walkers and a perfect stopover within sight of the Welsh border.

With the Chatsworth estate on the doorstep, Lord and Lady Burlington's Peak District hotel has had a ravishing makeover to complement the superb food in its restaurants.

Floor-to-ceiling windows make the most of stunning panoramic view over the harbour and Dingle Peninsula at this super-duper contemporary B&B on the Wild Atlantic Way, with a lounge menu served on the sea-facing terrace when the sun shines, and an exceptionally imaginative breakfast menu.

This dog-friendly gastropub just inland from the North Norfolk coast has characterful bedrooms, a Mediterranean-inspired garden, and plenty of different gins on the menu.

Former Gleneagles pastry chefs Phillip Skinazi and Andrew Mackay are enthusiastic hands-on owners at this former coaching inn in a conservation village, now an excellent restaurant with stylish, well-equipped rooms.

There is a spirit of inclusiveness about this family friendly, dog friendly, singularly accessible clifftop hotel and spa, with a wide range of rooms and suites, from cheap and cheerful to luxury, and a menu to suit most tastes.

Where the road ends and the Irish Sea begins, this former Victorian hunting lodge with a private cove is secluded, unapologetically traditional and rich in comforts and good food.