A cosy beamed pub is the warm heart of this hotel, in the shelter of wooded, red sandstone cliffs that reminded the young Queen Victoria of 'a ballet or a play where nymphs appear'.

Family run, dog-friendly and beloved of readers, the Reynolds' small country house hotel is praised for the comfort, service and ambitious cooking.

Birdwatchers and bon vivants beat a path to Tracy and Galton Blackiston's Michelin-starred restaurant-with-rooms in a flint farmhouse with Blakeney nature reserve on the doorstep.

A New Forest bolt-hole, this country house hotel has an easy glamour, romantic and family-friendly rooms, heart-warming Italian food and top-notch spa.

A Georgian manor house above Chesil Beach, this is a dog- and people-friendly hotel designed for holidays and fun, catering to everyone from tinies to grown-ups with sophisticated tastes.

Avowedly family-friendly and fun yet stylish, this hotel with spa occupies a Baroque Victorian mansion in five acres above the Fowey estuary.

Amid gardens, native woodland and meadow, this 16th-century manor house is today a family-friendly hotel and spa with contemporary comforts and a choice of formal and informal dining.