The Queens Arms

Corton Denham sits right on the Dorset and Somerset border, and this former ciderhouse sits at the middle of it. Family-owned, four miles from Sherborne and just off the A303, it works two ways at once: a stopover for anyone tracking between London and the West Country, and a genuine local that opens seven days a week. Ten rooms, designed with some care, look out over the rolling countryside.

Bold British flavours and classic favourites in an award-winning restaurant, with Sunday lunch, private dining and dining events on the books, plus a terrace for warmer days. Rooms are split across the inn, the Coach House and Queen's Court Cottage, and dogs are welcome. Meeting rooms too. If you are only passing, the adjoining Pub Hub does takeaway tea and coffee, bacon and sausage baps and local produce to carry home.