Livermead Cliff Hotel

Livermead Cliff Hotel sits right on the seafront at Livermead, west of Torquay's harbour, with a terrace and garden looking straight across Tor Bay. It is a relaxed, old-school seaside hotel where dogs are a normal part of the scene, and the setting does a lot of the work: the beach is across the road, the harbour is a 15-minute stroll along the front, and the bus to Paignton and Brixham stops outside.

Dogs stay in selected bedrooms only, so ask for a dog-friendly room when you book, and booking ahead is required. The charge is £15 per dog, per night, with a maximum of two dogs per room. Dogs are welcome in the lounges, the bar, the garden and the terrace, but not in the restaurant, so owners with a dog tend to eat in the bar instead.

Guests travelling with dogs speak well of the front-of-house team, who make a fuss of arriving dogs, and some have been given a small welcome pack for their dog. The roof terrace on a sunny evening, the views and the food are the other things people single out, and plenty come back year after year.

The downsides are real and worth weighing. Rooms run very hot in summer, with no air conditioning and often just a small fan, which several owners found hard going with a dog. The decor is dated, and the dog-friendly rooms have drawn a recent complaint about chewed carpet and suspected fleas. Dog beds are not provided as standard. The most common complaint is the dog charge itself: guests booking through third-party sites were often not told about it and were asked to pay on arrival, alongside a parking charge. The hotel is also a busy wedding venue, and late music has disturbed more than one stay.

Best suited to dog owners who want a sea-facing Torquay base with dogs welcome in the bar and on the terrace, and who are visiting outside the hottest weeks. It earns a 4.0/5 paw rating; bring your own dog bed and budget for the nightly charge from the start.