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.

High on the cliff top above Chesil Beach, this is an effortlessly hip, relaxed, fun hotel with a Cape Cod vibe, light and airy bedrooms, a bar serving cocktails and seriously good cooking in the restaurant.

Deep in Thomas Hardy country, this picture-perfect thatched cottage is a popular restaurant with rooms run with great charm by Ariane Jones and her husband, Jamie.

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

Readers are unanimous in their praise of the welcoming, helpful staff at this family-friendly hotel at the top of the town, with lovely garden, light-filled restaurant, and glorious views over Lyme Bay.

A dog and child-friendly hotel above Chesil Beach, this Georgian manor house is dedicated to family leisure and pleasure, with plenty to keep tots and teens amused, while the restaurant serves light bites by day, bistro-style dishes at dinner.

A 14th-century clergy house is home to this hotel, with bright, individually styled bedrooms, and a restaurant serving steaks and burgers as well as highly creative dishes, using locally sourced and home-grown produce.

There is a retro feel about this restaurant with rooms, little changed in more than three decades and run with pride, where affordable bedrooms are supplied with ground coffee and home-baked biscuits, and set-price and tasting menus demonstrate the chefs' skills without fancy gimmickry.

A fine Georgian coaching inn with strong Thomas Hardy associations, The King's Arms has characterful bedrooms and public spaces blending modern comforts with vintage finds, a dog-friendly drop-in bar with a real fire for drinks and casual dining, and a restaurant serving locally sourced pub classics and more inventive dishes.

Hogwarts in style, this fairytale 1820s marine villa with its jumble of roofs, gables, gargoyles, towers and dormers, is set in gardens running down to a sandy beach. It delivers the usual Pig magic, with its dressed-down interiors, mismatched furniture, casual vibe, house bedrooms, shepherds' huts, thatched dovecotes, and a kitchen garden.

Within strolling distance of the town and the beach, this eco-friendly hotel in a handsome Victorian clifftop villa has smart, contemporary-style bedrooms and serves imaginative modern dishes and Sunday roasts in the restaurant and on the terrace.

Smarter than the average Bear, this handsome bow-fronted Georgian coaching inn with a distinctive bear statue on a balcony is a fun hotel and local hangout, revamped in contemporary style

With its Tuscan columns and pedimented gable, this coaching inn appears solidly Georgian, but the interiors are contemporary, with well-equipped bedrooms, a clubby bar and dining room serving wood-fired pizzas and bistro-style dishes.

Berthed on the banks of the Stour since 2006, this child-friendly, dog-friendly, glass-and-steel hotel, with the sleek lines of a cruise liner, was built for leisure and family fun, with casual and more formal dining.