Maple, Bath

Set in the countryside at Camerton, a few miles southwest of Bath, this self-catering lodge trades city bustle for rural calm. It comes with its own hot tub, private grounds and the kind of quiet where you can hear owls after dark. For anyone travelling with a dog, that whole-house, whole-plot arrangement is the appeal: there are no shared corridors or communal lounges to negotiate, so a dog settles into the space as if it were home.

The clearest pet signal here comes from a guest who brought a small dog and singled out the on-site dog exercise area as a highlight of the stay, alongside hosts they found endlessly accommodating. It is a single detailed account rather than a deep pool of pet reviews, so treat the picture as promising rather than exhaustively documented. Even so, it points to a property set up to make a dog welcome rather than merely tolerated.

Practically, the format does much of the work. An entire-house rental with its own outdoor space means muddy paws and early-morning garden trips are your business alone, and the surrounding lanes and fields give you walking straight from the door. The lodge sleeps a couple comfortably with room to spare, so a dog underfoot never feels like a squeeze.

A couple of honest caveats. The property's booking listing does not spell out a formal pet policy, with no stated fee, weight limit or breed rules, so confirm the details directly before you book, especially if you are travelling with more than one dog or a larger breed. And because Camerton is genuinely rural, you will want a car; this is a retreat, not a walk-to-the-shops base.

Best suited to couples and small households after a peaceful rural bolt-hole near Bath, where a well-behaved dog can come along and stretch out, hot tub included.