The Royal Lion Hotel

The Royal Lion Hotel is a Victorian coaching inn at the top of Broad Street in Lyme Regis, a few minutes downhill from the seafront and the Cobb, and it takes dogs in the bedrooms and in the bar. It earns a 4.5 out of 5 paw rating from guests who brought one.

The combination owners keep mentioning is a dog-friendly room and a dog-friendly pub on the same site. On this stretch of the Dorset coast that solves the usual evening problem of leaving the dog upstairs while you go out to eat, and there is Guinness on tap in a bar where the dog is welcome to lie under the table. On-site parking is the other practical draw: parking in central Lyme is difficult for visitors, so having a space at the hotel means you can leave the car where it is and walk the dog along the front instead of circling for a kerb.

The position suits walkers. The South West Coast Path runs through the town, and guests using the hotel as a stage stop on sectional walks with a dog rate it for exactly that: bed, bar and a start point in one place. The Jurassic Coast beaches are a short stroll below, though dog access on them changes with the season, so check the current rules before heading down.

Worth weighing before booking. The property does not publish a pet fee, a weight limit or a list of designated dog rooms, so ring and confirm a dog-friendly room rather than assuming the standard inventory will do. The building is multi-storey Victorian, which means stairs, and the bar and ground-floor rooms get busy in high season, which is a lot to ask of a reactive dog. There is also an indoor pool and sauna, which dogs will be nowhere near.

Best suited to couples and small families with a sociable dog who want a central Lyme Regis base with parking, coast path access and somewhere to eat with the dog at their feet.