Read more: the rise of the B&B continued

By Dymphna Byrne, Mail on Sunday

Last updated at 10:12 23 July 2002


Distinctly Different



This quirky organisation makes a point of searching out oddities.

Converted mills, barns, rectories and churches are standard and The Old Post Office, near Hay-on-Wye, is said to be 'first class'.

Former police station The Old Lock-Up at Wirksworth, Derbyshire, has been renovated to provide a luxury setting for a romantic break with rooms full of antiques.

The comfortable converted chapel will make you feel 'so relaxed you could be almost be in heaven'.

Edward VII's guests for Goodwood alighted at Petworth where the waiting room - complete with ticket grilles - of the Old Railway Station is now part lounge, part breakfast room.

Bedrooms, all en-suite, are either in the station house or in two Pullman carriages.

The enthusiastic brochure compilers, Priscilla and Peter Roberts, practise what they preach.

Beds in their Old Windmill at Bradford-on-Avon include water, round and Gothic iron.

Prices £25 to £60.

For brochure, send a £3 cheque to P. Roberts, Distinctly Different, 4 Masons Lane, Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire BA15 1QN (www.distinctlydifferent.co.uk tel: 01225 866842).

At home in London

At Home In London, 70 Black Lion Lane, W6 9BE (www.athomeinlondon.co.uk tel: 0208 748 1943).

Looking for a comfortable, moderately priced bed for a few nights in a good residential part of London - Knightsbridge, Chelsea, Kensington, Islington?

If so, Maggie Dobson is your saviour. Maggie began in a small way 16 years ago, finding rooms for friends.

Now she has around 70 private houses on her books and knows them all.

Owners, mainly professional people, range from empty nesters to barristers, doctors, lawyers, interior decorators - people who have nice houses with a couple of rooms to spare.

Most bedrooms are en-suite, some have private bathrooms, a few share.

Rooms range from elaborate four-poster to small and neat.

Houses, always within walking distance of Tube stations, are popular with single women and families.

Double £51 to £85; single from £45.

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