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.

The yellow submarine in the grounds and a hedge sculpture of a giraffe set the scene at this playful, quirky hotel, in a traditional honey-stone building that is both family and dog friendly.

Inventive cooking of beautifully presented dishes impress at this gastropub overlooking the Evenlode valley, with four rooms that are smart but not ostentatiously 'designer'.

Overlooking subtropical gardens and sandy Carne Beach, the Ashworth family's hotel delights readers with its country-house style, superlative service and retro classics in the dining room.

There's certainly nothing monastic about this much-loved 'olde-world hotel with charm in abundance', in a 'wonderful building with a cleverly added glass dining room' looking out over gardens bordered by the River Frome.

On show through walls of windows, the sea is a huge presence at this family-run hotel on the cliffs above a surfers' beach, which offers craft sessions as well as a spa and kids club.

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.

Behind a neo-classical façade, this Georgian coaching inn is a happy mix of local drop-in, hotel and restaurant, with 'comfortable rooms, good food and welcoming staff', says a returning reader.

Just over a mile from York, this imposing William and Mary country house in 20 acres of beautiful gardens and parkland offers 'first-class food and service'.

Eco values as well as enjoyment are fundamental to this cliff-top hotel, with sea thrift-covered roof, sweeping curves, reed-filtered pool and walls of windows to soak up the light and the seascape.

Whether you turn up with muddy boots or in your Sunday best, with wet dogs or children, you will be greeted with a warm welcome at this jolly country inn between Windermere and Beatrix Potter's Hill Top home.

A walker's paradise on the Welsh border, the Hunter family's very dog-friendly hotel, in a Georgian former rectory with a 'beautiful garden and views', is much beloved by readers.

Welcoming and unfussy, Charles and Edmund Inkin's dining pub is an 'effortlessly stylish' base from which to explore some of Cornwall's best scenery on the coastal path.

'People come here for the food, and for good reason,' says a Guide insider of this buzzy pub with rooms, which is 'very much ye olde village inn, with rustic furniture and roaring fires under the beams'.

A jar of cookies in the bedroom is just one of the quirks at this fun, intimate boutique hotel, with bedrooms that mix vintage and modern, contemporary British cooking, great service – and Alnwick Castle a stroll away.

The rustic-chic bedrooms in farmhouse, cider house and barn at this rural Wye valley retreat in the Forest of Dean are all excellent, but the cooking is a still-greater attraction.

A landmark on Dedham's picturesque High Street, looking onto St Mary's Church, Piers Baker's medieval coaching inn impressed our inspectors with a comfortable bedroom 'overflowing with character', swift and personable service, and expert cooking of elevated pub food, especially seafood.

Cross the causeway to an island renowned for its seafood and tuck into some of its best at this 'lovely dog friendly foodie retreat', left empty and derelict from 2013 until Piers Baker stepped in to revamp it in 2021.

Family run, dog friendly and welcoming, this village pub at the foot of Howgill fells, between Lakes and Dales, is widely praised for its comfortable, individually styled bedrooms, pub classics and more creative dishes.

Pass the little gate lodge to drive up to this bay-fronted country house in wooded grounds edged by a beach on Lough Swilly.

Glamorous ocean vistas draw the eye beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows of this hotel, on a headland above St Ouen's Bay, beside Le Moye Golf Club. Designed to recall 1930s marine architecture, it has a pool in landscaped grounds and an ambience of holiday fun and leisure, with gourmet picnics on offer for a day's surfing or wildlife spotting.

Above Windermere, this Edwardian country house lies in gardens that melt into the glorious landscape. The hotel is part of the Storrs Collection (see Storrs Hall).

With an enviable position on Windermere, this Georgian hall has a relaxed country house feel, with formal and casual dining options, and bedrooms ranging from family friendly to seriously swanky.

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.

After a day browsing the galleries of this buzzy, arty town, you can escape the crowds to sit serenely sipping cocktails in the sub-tropical gardens at this peaceful small hotel which doesn't allow drop-ins or children under ten.

Huddled below wooded hills, beside a stone bridge over the River Monnow, this whitewashed former 17th-century coaching inn serves delicious food and has great walks from the door to help you justify eating it.