Unhip hotels

From country hotels which forgot to chuck out the chintz to B&Bs where the owners are more colourful than the curtains, we celebrate the places where hospitality and character are more important than cutting-edge design

• The Observer, Sunday November 30 2008
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Coopershill House ... as if the very walls have absorbed the warmth of seven generations of welcoming souls

City boltholes

1. The Church Street Hotel, Camberwell, London

Going down Mexico way wouldn't usually involve passing through Kennington on a No 36 bus. But now you can live out your ranchero fantasies on a London Underground Zone 2 travelcard. The brainchild of brothers Mel and Jose Raido, the Church Street Hotel in Camberwell - as close to badlands as London can muster - couldn't be more Mexican if it had a man in a sombrero sucking a cheroot. The reception area is all cool tiles, icons and a gold-painted front desk made from an altar. The bedrooms have bright walls of blues, greens and yellows, ironwork beds and Mexican tiles. Open the cigar box by the bed to find Green and Black's chocolate. No restaurant at present, but 100 per cent organic breakfasts of muesli with Tibetan goji berries and watermelon smoothies should fortify you for re-entry into south London.

• En suite doubles from £119 with breakfast. 020 7703 5984; churchstreethotel.com

2. By Appointment, Norwich

The style is theatrical and the welcome is warm at Timothy Brown and Robert Culyer's 15th-century house which they run as a restaurant-with-rooms. It is entered through a narrow courtyard with a Della Robbia relief on the wall; there are antique knick-knacks throughout. The five bedrooms, named after royalty, have unusual pieces - Edwardian inlaid wardrobes, perhaps a Victorian brass bed, an abundance of Victoriana on the dressing table. In the four small dining rooms tables are laid with silver cutlery and cruet sets.

• B&B £55-£70 per person; dinner £47. 01603 630730; byappointmentnorwich.co.uk

3. 21 India Street, Edinburgh

Portraits of the Macpherson clan beam down upon you at the delicious breakfast served in a sunny and elegant dining room. In this house of great character you are cared for by Zandra, who offers guests the Laird's Room with its half-tester bed and the (smaller) Patio Room with its own entrance. And it's just a hop and a skip up the majestic cobbled streets of New Town to the centre. Zandra plays the Scottish harp, loves to cook, has two beautiful black labradors and has written about her life as wife of a clan chieftain - read all about it in the spacious drawing room.

• Doubles from £95-£127.50. 0131 225 4353; twenty-one.co.uk

Seaside gems

4. The Royal Harbour Hotel, Ramsgate, Kent

When we called to tell owner James Thomas that we wanted to include the Royal Harbour in our list of un-hip hotels, he couldn't have been more delighted. After managing many upmarket London places, Thomas knows hip. And, judging by the reviews his Georgian waterfront Ramsgate hotel gets, he knows what guests value: and hip ain't necessarily top of the list. Instead the Royal Harbour offers homely touches that include fat sofas and open fires in the lounge (the suite has its own real fire, too), an honesty bar, hot water bottles, free cheese and paté for pre-dinner snacks (there is no restaurant, but plenty of places to eat nearby), games galore for kids and, gloriously, a 20-seat cinema in the basement. 'We like to think we've got as much warmth and charm as you can handle,' says James.

• Doubles from £99, including breakfast. 01843 591514; royalharbourhotel.co.uk

5. The Druidstone, Broad Haven, Pembrokeshire

On a cliff above a huge Pembrokeshire beach, Jane and Rod Bell's idiosyncratic family holiday centre has bags of character. Proud of belonging to the hippy generation, they want families to feel comfortable about bringing children. A slightly rough-around-the-edges feel is enjoyed by fans. Good unpretentious food is served in the bar, and bistro-style dishes in the restaurant; an interesting children's high tea. Pets are welcomed so long as they get on with the donkey, Jake.

• B&B £45-£74 per person; dinner £30. 01437 781221; druidstone.co.uk

6. Wentworth Hotel, Aldeburgh, Suffolk

Come to the Suffolk coast and time travel back to sleepy England at its loveliest. The Wentworth is warmly old-fashioned, quietly grand and full of its own traditions. The Pritt family have been here since 1920 and inside you find a warm seaside elegance, nothing too racy; instead, sunshine colours, fresh flowers, flickering coal fires, oils on the walls and shelves of books. Bedrooms (many with sea views) are plush: Zoffany wallpaper, reds and golds, French armoires, comfortable beds. Joyce Grenfell used to stay for the Aldeburgh Festival; a room is named after her.

• Doubles from £108-£225. Half-board £57-£125 per person. 01728 452312; wentworth-aldeburgh.com

7. The Walpole Bay, Margate, Kent

Margate may have seen better days but just along the coast in Cliftonville, a world away from the amusement arcades and chip shops, there is a haven of charm and mild eccentricity. This Edwardian gem is that rarest of things - a traditional seaside hotel that has not been tinkered with, given a boutique makeover or adapted for the conference market. Lovingly maintained by the Bishop family, it has evolved into a living museum, with antiques and artefacts in reception and walls covered in old photographs. The place oozes history, from the gramophone in the dining room to the Otis Trellis gated lift that has been carrying guests since 1927. Rooms are cosy, traditional and without pretence. Take afternoon tea on the flower-decked veranda and watch a game of bowls on the green opposite.

• Doubles from £60-£100 including breakfast. 01843 221703; walpolebayhotel.co.uk

8. Ocklynge Manor, Eastbourne, East Sussex

Ocklynge Manor won't be featuring in any boutique-hotel guides any time soon, but I doubt that bothers owners Wendy and David Dugdill. What this marshmallow-pink mansion, the former home of children's illustrator Mabel Lucie Attwell, lacks in cutting-edge design it more than makes up for in hospitality - guests who rise early for a day of meandering along the genteel seafront will find homemade bread and marmalade on the breakfast table. And the organic scrambled eggs with smoked salmon aren't bad either. The three large bedrooms, though chintzy, are comfortable, reassuringly old-fashioned and bathed with light thanks to big sash windows, and all have views of the walled garden. In short, it's a lovely place to spend a laid-back weekend by the sea. Bring that 500-page novel.

• Doubles from £70 per night including breakfast. 01323 734121; ocklyngemanor.co.uk

Country houses with character

9. The Cottage in the Woods, Malvern Wells, Worcestershire

A nine-mile ridge runs above this hotel, where fabulous walks lead through light-dappled trees. And while the view is magical, so is this welcoming hotel. The decor is not cutting-edge contemporary, but you wouldn't want it to be; here is a hotel where old-fashioned values win out. Service is charming, the sort you only get with a family who really love their work and a battalion of long-standing staff. Add to that fabulous food in a restaurant that drinks in the view, and you have a winning combination for those who seek solid comforts rather than fly-by-night fashion. Wonderful.

• Doubles from £99-£179, half-board (minimum two nights) £62-£114 per person. 01684 588860; cottageinthewood.co.uk

10. Milebrook House Hotel, Knighton, Powys

An old-school country hotel with three acres of fabulous gardens that run down to the river Teme. The house, once home to writer Wilfred Thesiger, is run in informal style by three generations of the Marsden family, with Beryl and Rodney leading the way. Step inside and enter a world rooted in a delightful past: clocks tick, cats snooze, fires crackle, the odd champagne cork escapes its bondage. Beautiful art hangs on the walls, the sitting room is stuffed with books, the bar comes in country-house style and there is food to reckon with in the wonderful dining room. The homely bedrooms are more than comfortable, so don't delay.

• Doubles from £103-£142, half-board (minimum two nights) from £72.50 per person. 01547 528632; milebrookhouse.co.uk

11. Coopershill House, Riverstown, County Sligo, Ireland

Hundreds of wild deer roam free throughout Coopershill Estate in the west of Ireland. So it is not surprising that Simon O'Hara, the owner and seventh generation of his family to live here, sticks his hat on the antlers that take pride of place in the grand hall of this 18th-century mansion. There are no grand 'Lord of the Manor' airs here. Nothing is taken too seriously except good old fashioned hospitality (and the secret venison stew recipe). There are eight elegant ensuite rooms, with original grandfather clocks, four-poster beds, and floor-to-ceiling gilded mirrors. One even has a Victorian roll-top bath, with original fully integrated cast-iron shower. The warmth of this house hits you the minute you arrive. It's not just the hallway's vast wood-burning stove which, surrounded by boots and battered chairs, heats the entire house. It is as if the very walls have absorbed the warmth of seven generations of welcoming souls.

• From €109-€136 per person including breakfast. Five-course dinner €59. 00 353 71 916 5108; coopershill.com

Enniscoe House, Ballina, County Mayo

Enniscoe makes me think of eiderdowns. 'Can't find anyone to mend them anymore. Such a shame. Hate to lose them,' said Susan, the owner of Enniscoe House, who maintains her Georgian home with an eiderdown ethos. They are on the beds because that's what was always there. There is no central heating, and yet I didn't feel one winter shiver with its roaring fires and storage heaters. The fire in my immense bedroom cast sultry shadows over the four-poster, my son's 'nursery' bed, and Enniscoe's eclectic art collection. Faded glamour, without a hint of shabbiness. The recently redecorated spiral stairwell was done with limewater plaster; 'You mustn't put new on old. Never works,' Susan said, digging at her organic vegetable garden. The house's grand entrance looks out over Lough Conn rather than towards the tree-lined driveway, because the view is what counts, not how 'one' is viewed.

• From €90-€116 per person, including breakfast. 00 353 96 31112; www.enniscoe.com

13. Frogg Manor, Broxton, Cheshire

A self-proclaimed eccentric, John Sykes has been known to greet visitors to his Georgian manor house wearing his dressing gown and trilby. The house is dedicated to frogs: there are hundreds (wood, straw, brass) in the public rooms which have a hint of Agatha Christie. Music from the 1930s and 1940s is played in the lounge and dancing is encouraged after dinner. The lavishly furnished bedrooms are themed (Nelson, Churchill, Mountbatten). Try the Lady Guinevere tree house in the grounds with its Arthurian murals.

• B&B £37-£135 per person; dinner £42. 01829 782629; froggmanorhotel.co.uk

14. Waterford House, Middleham, North Yorkshire

In a lively Yorkshire village sits this very pretty Georgian house, now turned into a small hotel. Martin and Anne are exceptional hosts, easy and delightful, and their house is full of beautiful things. Settle in for drinks and canapés in the cosiest drawing room, then amble across to the red dining room for a memorable meal and ambrosial wines. Bedrooms have bags of old-fashioned comfort: wrought-iron beds, William Morris wallpaper, pictures, books, sherry, home-made cakes. Breakfast, served on white linen, is a feast of local produce. Linger as long as you like - it's that sort of place - then grab a rod and fish or pull on your boots and unravel the Dales.

• Doubles from £90-£120, singles £75-£90. 01969 622090; waterfordhousehotel.co.uk

15. Hodgkinson's Hotel & Restaurant, Matlock Bath, Derbyshire

Though amusements and chip shops have invaded once-genteel Matlock Bath, you can still find a refuge from modern life in Hodgkinson's Hotel. Dating from the spa town's heyday, this stout Georgian building has restaurant, bar and, up a narrow staircase, eight bedrooms. On the way up you can admire owner Dianne Carrieri's collection of vintage snuffboxes, prints and china. The decor is Victorian with flowery wallpaper, iron beds, marble-topped dressers and lace tablecloths, but this is no museum piece. The staff are friendly and switched on. The intimate restaurant serves local food such as fillet of beef in stilton and mustard sauce or wild mushroom cannelloni. And there are books and games in the lounge, which has a log fire and resident fluffy cat.

• Doubles from £90, including breakfast. 01629 582170; hodgkinsons-hotel.co.uk

Unusual getaways

16. The Ceilidh Place, Ullapool, Ross and Cromarty, Scotland

Full of originality, Jean Urquhart's venture began as a cafe and grew into a hotel with book shop, arts centre and wholefood shop attached. The atmosphere is relaxed, the accommodation simple, with surprising touches like bathrobes and hot water bottles. The bedrooms are named after Scottish authors and filled with their books. The menu is dictated by what the fisherman has caught and what is ripe in the garden.

• B&B £41-£68 per person; dinner £32.50. 01854 612103; theceilidhplace.com

17. The Hundred House Hotel, Norton, Shropshire

Henry is an innkeeper of the old school, with a sense of humour. The 14th-century inn rambles charmingly inside as well as out. You are surrounded by Sylvia's wild and wonderful collage art, and the fun continues in riotously patterned and floral bedrooms. Most rooms have a swing hanging from the ceiling with a colourful velvet seat! A true one-off.

• Doubles from £75. 01952 730353; hundredhouse.co.uk

18. Doune, Knoydart, Inverness-shire, Scotland

You arrive by boat (there's no road in): a ferry to Knoydart, the last great wilderness in Britain. Martin and Jane look after you with unpretentious generosity and are now part of the tiny community. The pine-clad dining room is the hub, with a couple of guitars for the odd ceilidh. Food is delicious: crab from the bay, roast lamb, chocolate tart. Bedrooms are as simple as they should be. The walking is magnificent; the sunsets are breathtaking. Miss it at your peril.

• Full-board from £72 per person. Discounts for children. 01687 462667; doune-knoydart.co.uk

19. Pen-y-gwryd Hotel, Snowdonia, Wales

It's a cliché to say a hotel is stuck in a time warp, but that really is the best way to describe this place. It has been in the same family since 1947 and little seems to have changed - there are no locks on the doors, few en suite bathrooms, and no TVs or telephones. There are creaky floorboards, and heavy comforting bedclothes. During our stay one guest came to dinner in a cap and was promptly and publicly told to remove it by the formidable owner, Jane Pullee. A gong summons guests to breakfast and dinner. There's antique silver cutlery and napkins in napkin rings. The British Everest team came to train here in 1953, and returned to toast their success, bringing mementos - ice axes, oxygen cylinders - which are now proudly displayed around the bar. Then there's the location. The hotel sits halfway up the Pen-y-Pass, with Snowdon on one side, and the blasted rocky summits of the Glyders on the other.

• Open from January to the end of October, weekends only in January and February. Doubles from £80, including breakfast. 01286 870211; pyg.co.uk

20. McCoy's at the Tontine, Staddlebridge, North Yorkshire

Unashamedly eccentric, this restaurant-with-rooms on a triangle of land on the edge of the North York Moors is owned by brothers Tom and Eugene McCoy. It is comfortable rather than smart; dark panelled corridors are offset by smiling staff (young and old). Bedrooms are an inspired mix of junk shop discoveries, bright soft furnishings and vibrant colours, perhaps dark blue wallpaper with pink flowers offset by a dark raspberry ceiling. The candle-lit bistro has an eclectic blackboard menu.

• B&B £60-£95 per person; dinner £45. 01609 882671; mccoystontine.co.uk

• Hotels selected by: Alastair Sawday of Sawday's Special Places to Stay (sawdays.co.uk); Desmond Balmer editor of the Good Hotel Guide (goodhotelguide.com); Catherine Mack, author of ecoescape:Ireland (ecoescape.org); Tom Robbins; and Joanne O'Connor

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