Westmorland Hotel

Banish images of fast-food outlets and slot machines when you break your journey at Tebay near wild and woolly Shap Fell, 60 miles from the Scottish border. In 1972, when the M6 carved through the Dunning family’s hill farm, they diversified and created unique roadside services with a farm shop and an affordable hotel. It is ‘a real island of comfort and welcome’, says one reader; ‘fantastic for a stopover’ says another. There are ‘views towards the fells’ from most of the 'spacious, well-appointed' bedrooms. They’re not fancy, but have ‘shortbread, comfortable beds, good functional bathrooms’. Great walks start from the door, and, despite the motorway, it is ‘utterly quiet’, piped music apart. You can eat hearty, locally sourced food in the lounge by a log fire, or in the restaurant. For example, ‘really tender lamb shoulder, new potatoes, red wine jus… and the menu changed the second night we stayed.' 'The service was excellent and the staff very friendly – as they are in the farm shop, reflecting the ethos of the Dunning family owners.' (Philippa Parker, Bill Wood, Richard Bright, Sara Hollowell, and others)