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Modern hotel chains are well represented, and in rural areas you can choose between elegant country-house hotels, traditional coaching inns (updated to different degrees), and modest guesthouses. Some seaside hotels don’t accept one-night bookings in summer. If you plan to visit Cowes on the Isle of Wight during Cowes Week, the annual yachting jamboree in late July or early August, book well in advance.
Small but full of character, this family-owned inn in a Georgian town house dating from 1790 is elegantly decorated with period antiques. Guest rooms—one with its own small patio—are individually and impeccably furnished; some have four-posters. The generous breakfast, served in a conservatory overlooking a courtyard garden, includes free-range eggs and fresh fruit.
A thatched roof and flagstone bar are some of the 16th-century features of this small inn, where the individually furnished bedrooms make the most of the original beams, exposed brickwork, and stone fireplaces. There's an extensive garden to sit in, and the sea is a 10-minute walk away. Locally sourced gastropub dishes (such as beer-battered fish-and-chips or a fillet of stone bass with butter beans) are available daily. Local craft beers are a specialty. The place is extremely dog-friendly, so anyone with an aversion to Fido should stay away.
Located halfway between Wilton and Salisbury, this comfortable ex-gamekeeper's cottage overlooks a cricket ground and has a large, peaceful garden of its own; a modern annex provides additional suites and apartments. Rooms are individually decorated, so it's good to check the website. There is no restaurant (though the apartments have kitchenettes), but evening snacks are available on weekdays. The B&B is on the main A36 road, a mile or so west of Salisbury's center.
With their eclectic design, rare prints, and antique furnishings, the two spacious guest rooms of this charming B&B in a Queen Anne building are full of character. The real draw, however, is their view of the Avebury stone circles, which the Lodge sits within. Generous vegan and vegetarian breakfasts use mostly organic ingredients and are cooked to order.
It's worth seeking out this characterful 17th-century "country pub with cottages and rooms," located 10 miles north of Wimborne Minster in a lovely area designated a National Landscape. Despite a stylish makeover, the building retains many of its original period features, such as the bar, flagstone floors, and inglenook fireplace. Bedrooms, some with four-posters, have a country-house feel. Tasty local and seasonal food, like fish tacos with chipotle sour cream or a chicken supreme with gnocchi and oyster mushrooms, is available daily in the bar or in the more formal Shed restaurant on weekends. Dogs are welcome guests.
Ideally located opposite the cathedral, this 18th-century inn, now a gastropub with rooms, has received a smart, modern makeover without losing any of its character. Each of the guest rooms is named for a noted fabric designer, such as Nina Campbell or Zoffany, with textiles that pay tribute to their style, and the furnishings include traditional touches like sleigh beds. Few rooms have actual cathedral views, though the top-floor Design House suite is an outstanding exception. A two-bedroom apartment in an annex uses Designers Guild fabrics, and another self-contained apartment is ideal for families. The gastropub below serves superb food and drink, with warming open fires in winter and tables on the terrace in summer. Permits are issued for street parking nearby.
You can't stay at Stourhead, but you can stay just inside the main entrance at this popular inn built at the beginning of the 19th century. Guests are admitted free to Stourhead's gardens at any time. The five bedrooms are elegant and tastefully understated, with some period features like uneven wood floors and Georgian sash windows. The restaurant uses locally sourced ingredients and specializes in small plates and simple, traditional pub classics like beer-battered fish-and-chips.
A watering hole since 1755, this pub with rooms near the cathedral and the college wears its Britishness proudly, with depictions of national heroes like Nelson and Churchill, military artifacts, and an assortment of pewter mugs hanging from the ceiling. The individually decorated rooms are comfortable and characterful, if on the small side, with freestanding baths and good modern showers. The seven rooms in an annex across the street are more modern. A well-regarded wine list sets off the Modern British dishes at the restaurant, which is popular with locals.
