The Best Hotels to Book in and Around Burgh Island

Those who can, stay at the Burgh Island Hotel, built by filmmaker Archibald Nettlefold in the 1930s. It’s an art deco masterpiece – full of period furniture, distinctive deco trim and period colours – with glorious views over the sea, island and mainland. Staying here, you can sleep in rooms that once welcomed Agatha Christie, Noel Coward and a string of politicians, dignitaries and 1930s socialites. For maximum nostalgia, a black tie and evening dress is required to dine at the Grand Ballroom.

The view of sand and sea would be a reason to stay at the Henley Hotel all by itself. This Edwardian cottage overlooking the mouth of the Avon feels more like a family home than a hotel – with a cosy library, home-from-home bedrooms with period-correct furniture and a fleet of soft armchairs facing the view. There’s good food from local producers here, but the winning feature for most is sitting outside looking over the bay.

Bantham is a tiny brushstroke in a landscape painting of Devon countryside, with the Sloop Inn at its heart. Ending a line of thatched Devon cottages, this convivial village pub has award-winning food – local seafood, produce and meats, served in globe-trotting ways – and summery rooms full of nautical ornaments. Shoals of fish swim across walls, wooden boats bob on bedside tables and windows sneak views across rooftops to the sea and the South Devon’s Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

A raised vantage point looking out over stunning Devonshire countryside, the Thurlestone is luxury all the way. Even the outdoor pool has views – there’s an indoor pool too, for cold-weather swimming. The interiors are full of refined patterns, sumptuous soft upholstery and tasteful wooden furniture here. A view from your room comes as standard – and some rooms have balconies framing even wider vistas. Other perks include spa treatments, fine food and bedrooms with extra bunk beds for families.

Protected by a rocky promontory and sheltering a golden beach tucked under the cliffs, Hope Cove is about as Devon as you can go without being served jam and cream at every chance. At Hope Cove House, cosy rooms with metal-framed beds and vintage chests of drawers have views over the gully – that drops through the village to the sea. Keep in mind that this guesthouse is closed on Sunday nights and Mondays, except during the school holidays.

Handsome, stone-fronted Church House is even older than it looks. The building has been gracing the main road through Churchstow since 1250 – when this was a rest house for Benedictine monks from famous Buckfast Abbey – and it’s still a cosy break from the road today. Downstairs is a friendly local pub serving Devon and Cornish ales while upstairs features bright, pretty rooms in comforting colours. The pub garden has beach-hut-like shelters for cold and rainy days, driving home that beachside feel.

You’ll know before you step inside this immaculate white village house in Ivybridge that the rooms are dreamy here. Each is different – some feature bold, bright colours while others are more subtle and refined – but all rooms have colour palettes drawn from the artworks on the walls. The restaurant makes almost everything from scratch and serves foraged wild ingredients and fish caught in local rivers. The location is handy for the whole stretch of coast: from Plymouth to Torquay.

Green countryside wraps around Merrifield House like a blanket, meaning birdsong rather than road noise will wake you in the morning. Churchstow is the nearest village but most visitors face the other way, soaking up the views over the empty landscapes of Dartmoor National Park. Simple, friendly rooms are named after yoga poses – setting the scene for yoga classes and wellness therapies provided by the spirited owners.

Gently slumbering, the village of Galmpton is a handy base for a string of beaches and coves running south from Burgh Island to the Bolt Tail headland. This modernised farmhouse has snug B&B rooms with a country-house feel and the barns have been stylishly reimagined as cool self-catering spaces – with wood-burning stoves, proper kitchens and space for up to nine people to sleep in comfort.