Ponycob at Dolgoy

Dolgoy sits in the Ceredigion countryside a short drive inland from Llangrannog, on the stretch of Cardigan Bay coast between New Quay and Aberporth. Ponycob is one of the cottages converted on the smallholding: two bedrooms, two en-suites, a private hot tub, wood floors and a properly fitted kitchen. For anyone travelling with a dog, the format does most of the work - the whole cottage is yours, there is no reception or shared corridor to negotiate, and the garden belongs to your cottage alone.

The provision that sets it apart is a shared fenced exercise paddock on the smallholding, so a dog can have a proper off-lead run without anyone getting back in the car to find somewhere safe. Dog-owning guests are also met with a welcome pack in the cottage: feeding and water bowls, a ball and thrower, a towel, and dog tags printed with the cottage's contact details, which is the sort of thing that only matters until the day it does. There is no pet supplement, so the dog travels free.

Two things are worth planning around. Dolgoy is a working smallholding with goats, guinea fowl and the owners' own cats and dogs around the grounds, so a dog that reacts to livestock or to other animals will need managing, and the house rules are drawn accordingly: leads on everywhere except your own garden and the paddock, and no leaving a dog alone in the cottage. Access is along narrow Ceredigion lanes, which is normal for the area but not quick. Llangrannog and Penbryn beaches are close by for longer walks, with the coast path running above both.

Best suited to a couple or a small family with one settled dog who want a high-specification self-catering base with safe running space on site, and who like the idea of a smallholding rather than being wary of it. Less suited to anyone who needs to leave a dog in the property while they go out, or to a dog that would find resident farm animals hard work.