Wilton Court Hotel

Wilton Lane, Wilton, Ross-on-Wye

The riverside setting would be enough for Wilton Court to make this list. Every one of the 10 individually decorated rooms offers a view of the river or the gardens with its 300-year-old mulberry tree. Then you have the house: full of Elizabethan character (it was once a magistrates court), it boasts original fireplaces and ancient oak beams. Given the produce at hand, it’s no surprise that head chef Martyn Williams’s food is excellent. Typical dishes include roast quail and apricot salad; venison haunch steak; grilled stone bass; and cider panna cotta. Doubles from £125.