The Priory

There’s certainly nothing monastic about the rooms in this much-loved hotel, standing in four acres of lovely grounds bordered by the River Frome beside the Saxon priory church. 'It was wonderful to stay here again,' a returning guest writes. ‘Our room exceeded expectations,’ writes another, who slept in one of the Boat House suites with French doors to a riverside veranda. ‘It was beautifully decorated and furnished with polished wood and various artefacts, a super-comfortable bed.’ The bathroom had a walk-in shower and spa bath. Bedrooms in the main building all have their own character, perhaps toile de Jouy wallpaper and fabrics. Some have gorgeous views over the large garden to the river, others overlook an inner courtyard. In the ‘beautiful, airy, modern’ new Garden restaurant, Stephan Guinebault’s menus include dishes such as coffee and paprika-marinated loin of Purbeck venison, or roasted root vegetable parcel. ‘The food is excellent, as before’, and service is ‘friendly and attentive’. Breakfast brings ‘lovely fruit salad and cooked options’. (Frances Thomas, John Barnes, JC, EG and others)