Ah, the Suffolk coast... that'll be very modish, Islington by the sea?

Well, if you mean that the hotel's design and comfort are of the highest standard, with plenty of classy touches like the rooms' wool carpets and bathroom showers with heads as big as plates, yep, it's modish. But prices are very non-metropolitan and, unlike, say, Southwold, 20 minutes' drive to the north, Orford is too small to be overrun by outsiders, though they might start coming for the food...

Why's that then?

The food at the C&C is fantastic, worth the trip alone. Husband-and-wife owners Ruth and David Watson (the former has twice won the Glenfiddich award for her food writing) pride themselves in sourcing much of their food locally, so there's plenty of fish and seafood (though the steak is very good, too). The crab cake is a house favourite and, if you do stay, breakfast on the haddock.

May I bring my dog?

The 18 rooms are divided between the main house and a handsome garden, which faces eastwards towards Orford Ness, the largest vegetated shingle spit in Europe (and sometime home to the odd military test), and the sea beyond. By night, the view is marked by the lights of passing boats. The garden rooms have their own terrace and the hotel is happy for those staying in these to bring their dogs, companions for all those local walks.

Where should we head?

The best starting point - and key attraction for visitors to Orford - is the well-maintained twelfth-century Norman Castle, now taken care of by English Heritage. Take the stairs to the top of the keep and you can see the area's other main attraction, the distinctive Ness and the coastline, by turns, bleak and beautiful. Inland, check out the Tunstal forest, complete with its red deer.

· The Crown & Castle, Orford, Woodbridge, Suffolk IP12 2LJ (01394 450205). Double rooms range from £80 to £125 a night on weekdays, with special packages at weekends.