number 38 clifton

You'll feel on top of the world in this smartly converted Georgian merchant's house, with panoramic views across the city from the back and the delightful Clifton Downs in front.

Up a lavender-lined front path, through a stained glass door, find huge style and comfort, without a whiff of pretension: knobbly oatmeal carpets, wide floorboards, beautiful colours, modern art (including a superb sculpture by Cornish artist Tom Leaper) and a few happily battered antiques. Bedrooms are upstairs or down, all with big beds, deep mattresses, long views, clever panelling and bathrooms you'll want to take home - the top suites with splendid brass baths and Victorian tiling.

Breakfast is fresh and west-country sourced. Go for the Full Monty or smoked salmon and scrambled eggs. Huge fun to watch the skies and have a cream tea or evening drink in the gravelled back terrace, where there are comfortable rattan chairs and sofas among colourful pots of plants from the Scilly Isles (there is a family link). You are within walking distance of good restaurants, pubs and the city centre.