Bring the dog, bring the kids, revel in the gorgeous scenery and the great outdoors at this ‘lifestyle hotel’ with private shorefront on Ullswater and plenty of activities on offer. It's the old, staid Rampsbeck Hotel reinvented (out with the chintz and swags, on with the wetsuits or hiking boots!)

You don't have to blow a fortune to stay at this relaxed yet refined hotel in some converted barns, the former home of Langham Glass, and featuring many charming nods to its heritage.

'Hotel settings don't get much more spectacular than the Polurrian's, on the cliff edge overlooking its own beach,' writes a guide insider. The relaxed family and dog-friendly hotel makes the most of the coastal views.

Leave the fuss and fret of the AI(M) at Scotch Corner to reconnect with the land at this idyllic hotel, centred on a Georgian coach house amid gardens, parkland and woodland.

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

Life is attuned to nature at this country-house hotel in a Georgian mansion on a working estate. with walled garden, biodynamic farm, luxury spa, and two restaurants that celebrate seasonality and provenance.

'An exceptional seaside hotel', with views from the rooms and terrace to secluded Combesgate beach below, this family-friendly hotel is a former Edwardian gentleman's retreat.

Steeped in romance, this Elizabethan manor-house hotel is a place of contrasts, blending history with modern amenities, from the Great Hall lounge and four-poster bedrooms, to Scandi-style wellness rooms with outdoor hot tub, a state-of-the art spa, a Michelin-starred restaurant and more informal brasserie.

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.

A favourite hangout of the England football team, the former home of Lord Louis Mountbatten has contemporary bedrooms, cosseting suites, a good choice of eating and drinking spaces, and a magnificent spa.

A 'sprawling, traditional building in a beautiful setting' at the tip of Windermere, this family and dog-friendly hotel has easy access to lake-based activities as well as a spa.

There is a clever mix of the traditional and modern at this Victorian coaching inn with contemporary main-house, poolside and spa suites, inventive cooking in the restaurant, and an all-year heated outdoor pool.

The only pub on this family-owned, car-free island, the New Inn has smart contemporary interiors alongside plenty of innate charm.

A charming 'village within a village', this collection of honeyed buildings houses impeccably designed rooms surrounded by pretty gardens, with spring-fed outdoor pool, spa, cookery school, bar, and short, modern menus of country produce in the Ox Barn.

Winston Churchill, Charlie Chaplin and Elizabeth Taylor were among notable guests entertained by press baron Lord Beaverbrook at this glamorous Victorian mansion overlooking Italianate gardens, now an opulent spa hotel and treasure trove of memorabilia, with a tempting range of dining options.

Pigs have foraged in the New Forest since the Norman Conquest, but a different breed arrived in 2011, when Robin Hutson took on a Georgian hunting lodge and reinvented the English country-house hotel, with a shabby-chic style mixing designer wallpapers and boot-sale finds in characterful house rooms and hideaway suites. Seasonal menus feature produce from the bountiful kitchen garden.

Enjoy Victorian Gothic splendour and fine or more casual dining at this country mansion with a spa and golf course in parkland.

The setting is pure hog heaven at this hotel, surrounded by a deer park in a fold in the Mendips. The part-Georgian building comes in the group's shabby-chic style and there's a kitchen garden with smokehouse, a wild-flower orchard, greenhouse, fruit cages and beehives, hens a-laying, and a 25-mile menu.

With golf, tennis, kayaking and powerboating, indoor pool and outdoor hot tub, this spa hotel in 65 acres of garden and woodland on the Helford river is a holiday resort in its own right.

Eligible military guests receive a discount at this Edwardian gem of a Scottish revival country house in beautifully maintained gardens, owned by a charitable trust and filled with family mementoes, where bedrooms blend classic and contemporary style and tasting menus feature produce from the walled kitchen garden.

With quirky, stylish bedrooms, spa, tennis court and outdoor pool, the Milsom family's country house in the heart of Constable country is a perfect place to relax and recharge. Guests have a choice of brasserie-style menus at nearby sister hotel Milsoms, and fine dining at the legendary Talbooth Restaurant, in a Tudor building right by the River Stour.