“I’d rather have dogs in my hotel than children any day. Dogs are much better behaved,” says Paul Whittome, owner of the Hoste Arms in Burnham Market.

The hotel will supply bowls and blankets in bedrooms, and even allow pets into the dining room as long as other guests don’t object. The only no-go area is his new Zulu wing: “All the wood and leather is a bit too tempting.”

The hotel has its own garden and courtyard, and with Sandringham near by, the whole area is dog-friendly, crawling with labradors and green wellies. Best of all, some fantastic empty north Norfolk beaches and dunes are three miles away for breezy walks and picnics.

• The Hoste Arms, Burnham Market, Norfolk (01328 738777, www.hostearms.co.uk). Dogs £5 per stay, owners two nights’ half-board £168pp.

  Cliveden House, Berkshire

  For stressed city pooches, Cliveden must be heavenly — the glittering former home of the Astor family has 400 acres of woodlands to keep tails wagging. Guests are given estate maps showing where dogs can roam off the lead.

  They also have the run of the glamorous public areas and bedrooms — only the dining room is off-limits, but the chef has compiled his own menu of doggie delights. These include “noisette of Chunky”, “delice de Pal on a bed of Winalot” and “trio of lights, spleen and lungs”.

• Cliveden House, Taplow, Berkshire (01628 668561, www.clivedenhouse.co.uk). Dogs free, owners £109-£320 B&B per room per night.

  The Port Light Hotel, nr Salcombe

  Like-minded pet owners can get together at this hotel, a former golf club house and RAF radar station which has special weeks for certain breeds; retrievers are the most popular, while weeks for small dogs include Westies, poodles and Jack Russells (heaven help the guests!). The rest of the year, all dogs are welcome.

  A 20-acre National Trust field borders the garden with great walks, and the beaches at Hope Cove and Soar Mill Cove are only 20 minutes away, but in the hotel’s public areas dogs should be kept on the lead. Bring your own blanket or dog bed.

  Lygon Arms, Broadway

  The prestigious 16th-century inn, owned by the Savoy, is another five-bone rated establishment where they’ll provide doggie bags with Bonios, chocs and biscuits, and “do not disturb” signs on bedroom doors so that the chambermaid won’t interrupt Fido’s slumber.

  Dogs aren’t allowed in the dining room but they have the run of the other public areas, and there’s a huge log fire for them to monopolise. All the staff like dogs and even the concierge has been known to walk pets around the courtyard and garden. Plus there’s the Cotswolds to explore on the doorstep.

  White Topps, Bournemouth

  Marjorie Titchen at the seven-bedroom White Topps in Bournemouth will accept human holidaymakers only if they’re accompanied by a dog — whether it’s a single Yorkie or six alsatians.

  And if Rover is getting crotchety in his old age, he’ll be offered the ground floor room reserved for elderly or infirm canines. Other guests will dog-sit if owners want a night out. A dog-friendly beach is 450 yards away.

• White Topps, Southbourne, Bournemouth (01202 428868). Dogs free, B&B per person £210 a week (bedrooms are not en suite).

  Holne Chase, Devon

  The crème de la crème of pads for pooches, this former hunting lodge has the unlimited use of trees in more than 70 acres of woodland in Dartmoor National Park.

  Lots of doggie extras: sag bags, towels, stockpot dinners — and for the boys — a blind date with the proprietors’ bassett hound, Batty, who even has her own website.

  For owners, there’s salmon and fly-fishing on the hotel’s estate, and riding.

• Holne Chase, Ashburton, Devon (01364 631471, www.holne-chase.co.uk). £5 a night for dogs, owners £130-£170 B&B per double room per night.

  Jill Crawshaw

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