Lodges with private hot tubs in Shropshire

Most of the stays gather in the south, in the Shropshire Hills around Clun, Bishop's Castle and Church Stretton. This is the quiet end of an already quiet county, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, all long ridges, sheep pasture and very little traffic. The walking starts at the door, and so does the dark sky. It is the part of Shropshire that feels furthest from anywhere, which is usually the point of coming.

Within those hills, each base has its own feel. Clun and the country towards the Welsh border are about as remote as England gets. Bishop's Castle adds a small market town with independent shops and two old breweries.

Ludlow, on the southern edge, trades the hills for a famous food scene and a castle above the river. Church Stretton sits right beneath the Long Mynd, the gateway to its big walks.

Not everything is in the south, though. North of Shrewsbury, the country opens out, flatter and greener. A lodge sits by the meres at Ellesmere, and a hut hides away near Whitchurch at the county's northern tip.

More of the northern stays gather in the quiet farm country around Market Drayton: the thatched folly, the indoor-pool manor, a pair of couples' cabins and a lakeside family cottage. A couple more lie out on the Oswestry edge to the west. Others are near Shrewsbury, east at Bridgnorth on the Severn, or far south-east at Cleobury Mortimer. These corners are better connected than the hills, with a shop, a station and the motorway in easy reach, which suits a first night or a shorter hot tub break.

Two of you, or twenty of you

Two people are the easy case here, and the county has plenty of boltholes for two. Think log cabins, shepherd's huts, converted barns and the odd folly, most with the hot tub placed where the view is best. Several are properly private, down a farm track with no neighbour in sight, which is the kind of self-catering break a lot of couples want. A few sit at the luxury end, with a woodburner inside and the hot tub already warm when you arrive.

Shropshire is also unusually good for a crowd. The biggest houses sleep far more than a usual rental, and a few are genuinely one of a kind. They include a whole pub given over to a single group, and a manor with its own indoor pool. Others come with a games room and a sauna to keep all ages busy. These are the reunion and big-birthday places, with space to spread out and a hot tub nobody has to queue for.

There is plenty for families and mid-size groups too. A cottage near a village, with a garden for the children and a pub within walking distance, does the job for six or eight. Bigger ones take ten to fourteen without ever feeling empty.

From the Long Mynd to Ironbridge

The Long Mynd is the walk that defines the area, a high heath above Church Stretton with long views into Wales. The easy way up is through Carding Mill Valley, where the National Trust has a car park and a tearoom at the bottom. The Stiperstones, the jagged ridge to the west, is wilder and quieter, with quartzite tors and a path along the tops.

For something longer, Offa's Dyke follows the border near Clun, and the Clee Hills to the east are the highest ground in the county. If you would rather amble than climb, Wenlock Edge gives a long wooded ridge with gentle paths, and the towpaths around the northern meres are flat at any pace.

When the legs need a rest, there is plenty off the hills too.

• Ironbridge Gorge, a World Heritage site of ten museums, is the big rainy-day option, with Blists Hill Victorian Town the pick for families.
• Ludlow draws people for its food as much as its Norman castle, with butchers, delis and a riverside walk under the walls.
• Shrewsbury wraps inside a loop of the Severn, a medieval county town with a castle, an abbey and a big riverside park.
• Stokesay Castle, near Craven Arms, is one of England's best-preserved fortified manor houses and an easy stop between Ludlow and the hills.
• The Severn Valley Railway runs its steam trains from Bridgnorth to Kidderminster, a proper day out and a fair-weather favourite.
• Attingham Park, a National Trust estate near Shrewsbury, has a deer park, a walled garden and long pram- and dog-friendly walks.

From the central hills, these are mostly under an hour. Ironbridge is the one longer hop, especially from the far south-west, so it pays to save it for a full day. The rest are close enough to pair up: a morning on the hills, an afternoon at a castle or a steam train, and not much road in between.

Dogs, distance and the hot tub details

Dogs are well looked after here, but the detail worth checking is the outdoor space. Plenty of stays take pets, yet a securely enclosed garden or paddock is what lets a dog off the lead, and not every listing has one. The pods above the Stiperstones, the huts with their own paddock and a horse-stud cottage near Bishop's Castle are among the ones set up for it. If the dog is coming, look for dog-friendly accommodation with a real fence, not just a pets-welcome tick.

Distance is the other thing to weigh, because remote means different things across the county. The hill stays can be properly off-grid, down a long farm track with patchy phone signal. Broadband may not hold a work call, which is bliss for a true escape and a nuisance if you need to log on. The trade is dark skies, quiet, and a hot tub with nothing in front of it but hills. If that sounds like too much, the stays near Shrewsbury and the northern towns are the easier-going choice.

The hot tubs here are all private, and almost all are included with no extra to pay. That is not always the case in Shropshire. Some places add a supplement to use the hot tub, or only run it in summer, so it is worth checking on anything you compare. What varies with ours is how they heat. A few are wood-fired, so they take a few hours and a little effort to warm up. Light them early on the first evening. The rest are plug-in, and many owners switch them on before you arrive, so the first soak waits for you rather than the other way round.