Hever Castle B&B

You can enjoy exclusive access to the grounds of Anne Boleyn's childhood home once the crowds have gone home when you stay in this ‘wonderful B&B for history lovers’, housed in the adjacent ‘Tudor village'. In landscaped parkland with Italian garden, Japanese teahouse and 35-acre lake, it was built for William Waldorf Astor in the early 1900s for the guest overflow from his fairy-tale moated castle. 'It has been done exceptionally well’, says a Guide insider, noting that everyone from Churchill to Elizabeth Taylor has stayed here. ‘Some bedrooms have elaborate plaster ceilings or beams, perhaps a four-poster and wood panelling.' A twin room with balloon-motif wallpaper and 'supremely comfy beds' was 'delightful'. UHT milk was a minus, an umbrella a thoughtful plus. The Anne Boleyn wing is less grand than the Astor Wing, though the Edward VII suite has ‘superb castle views, an enormous bed as well as a sofa bed in the sitting area’. Breakfast 'fit for a king' is served till a rather early 9.30 am in a ‘magnificent oak-panelled dining room’. You can eat in nearby pubs and return to use the comfy lounge and billiard room.