Great British seaside breaks: 10 best bed and breakfasts

B&Bs to covet

A good B&B is all you need for a relaxing British break this year and we\'ve selected the best around

Click here to go back to \'50 great British breaks by the sea\' for coastal campsites, boutique hotels, self-catering and holiday parks

For a chic weekend away

Escape, Llandudno, Conwy

Llandudno, on the North Wales coast, may sound like the sort of place your grandparents went to, but it is on the brink of a revival. The North Shore promenade offers old-fashioned attractions, as does the James Bond-like cable car to the Great Orme. The super-stylish Escape B&B is representative of its more up-to-date charms. Its nine rooms have been individually designed - styles range from 1960s retro cool to 18th-century French chic - and come equipped with DVD players, WiFi and PlayStations. Vegetarians, as well as carnivorous lovers of the Full Welsh, are catered for at breakfast, too...

For more information call 01492 877776, www.escapebandb.co.uk; from £85 per night.

For nautical atmosphere

Driftwood Spars, St Agnes, Cornwall

The beams in the downstairs pub are hung with pieces of ships wrecked off nearby Trevaunance Cove, but that just adds to the atmosphere. The 15 rooms, which borrow their colour scheme from Cornish Blue crockery, have garden or sea views. Breakfast is served in the sun-bathed restaurant, which also offers tasty lunch and dinner menus, dominated by Newlyn-landed fish.

For more information call 01872 552428, www.driftwoodspars.com; from £86 per night.

For home comforts

The Crab & Lobster, Sidlesham, Hampshire

This 16th-century ‘restaurant with rooms\' overlooking Pagham Harbour Nature Reserve might be intimate, but everything about the Crab & Lobster oozes class. Bedrooms are more boutique hotel than seafront flophouse and the food\'s pretty good, too.

For more information call 01243 641233, www.crab-lobster.co.uk; from £120 per night.

For high spirits

Dobbin\'s Inn Hotel, Carrickfergus, Co Antrim

As parts of this B&B date back to the 13th century, it\'s no surprise that the family-run Dobbin\'s Inn claims to be stalked by a resident ghost. Fair enough, it\'s a good spot to haunt. Full Irish breakfasts are enjoyed in the restaurant and bar. And, yes, it does serve spirits.

For more information call 028 9335 1905, www.dobbinsinnhotel.co.uk; from £76 per night.

For an artistic stopover

Nineteen, Brighton, East Sussex

Ideally placed for a weekend break in this holiday spot, eight-room townhouse Nineteen is more than just a seaside B&B. Its communal areas double as a showcase for local artists, and the rooms are more Hoxton than Hove - beds in the King Rooms, for example, incorporate light installations. Breakfast, served in your room, comes with Bloody Mary or Champagne.

For more information call 01273 675529, www.hotelnineteen.co.uk; from £125 per night.

pic: http://www.hotelnineteen.co.uk/ 

For English hospitality

Ocklynge Manor, Eastbourne, East Sussex

A former monastery, this rose-pink mansion is surrounded by a walled garden, and its three rooms stick to the English B&B template with divan beds and mahogany furniture. At breakfast, homemade bread and marmalade are served alongside the bacon and eggs.

For more information call 01323 734121, www.ocklyngemanor.co.uk; from £70 per night.

For taking time getting there

The Plockton Hotel, Plockton, Ross-shire

Half the fun of staying here is the drive. Situated in an idyllic fishing village, this gorgeous 15-room B&B is just off the A87, an epic road that winds its way through the Highlands. The hot breakfasts are predictably delicious.

For more information call 01599 544274, www.plocktonhotel.co.uk; from £80 per night.

For a walk in the marshes

The White Horse, Brancaster Staithe, Norfolk

The stylish and friendly, 15-room White Horse provides the perfect base for walkers looking to make the most of the briny air and big skies - as well as gourmands after super-fresh seafood. Many rooms offer views out to sea.

For more information call 01485 210262, www.whitehorsebrancaster.co.uk; from £100 per night.

For taking the kids crabbing

Bell Inn, Walberswick, Suffolk

Walberswick is all about the dunes. There are acres of them, criss-crossed by crab-filled channels, with fine sand that\'s tramped into the village. A fair amount also finds its way into the 600-year-old Bell Inn, a bustling seaside pub with six rooms.

For more information call 01502 723109, www.bellinn-walberswick.co.uk; from £80 per night.

For Northern comfort

The Olde Ship Inn, Seahouses, Northumberland

This 18th-century stone building houses a dark-wood bar with every maritime knick knack imaginable, and 18 comfortable rooms on the upper levels. Ask for the kippers at breakfast.

For more information call 01665 720200, www.seahouses.co.uk; from £96 per night.