Tholt-y-Will B&B

Tholt-y-Will House stands high up Sulby Glen, a modern build of stone and dark timber dropped into a fold of the northern hills. No village around it, only the glen road, the trees and the water below.

The house appears on the slope above the road, its upper storey glazed almost end to end with a railed terrace across the front. A small painted board on a mossy trunk marks the turning, with gravel by the door to park on.

Glass, pale wood and an orange sofa

The finish is well above what bed and breakfast usually promises: pale plank floors, white walls, and windows that hand the decorating job to the hillside. The guest space runs open-plan, with a long orange sofa, a dining table by the sliding doors and a sideboard holding the coffee machine. Breakfast appears on the counter as a board of cold meats, cheese, tomatoes and fruit.

The two double rooms

Both rooms take a large double bed, one with a buttoned grey headboard, the other with a black quilt and framed prints. The bathrooms are worth the trip on their own: a wet room panelled in warm timber around a deep bath, and a stone basin set on a plinth. One bedroom opens straight outside through glazed doors.

The deck above the glen

Sliding doors run out onto a timber deck with a table and metal chairs, backed by a bank of moss and rock. Below, the ground drops into woodland where a stream slides under an old stone arch.

Sulby Glen, and the road down to Ramsey

This is properly rural. The B&B is up the glen rather than in any town; the nearest town is Ramsey, over on the north-east coast. What you get instead is forestry, the stream, and a hill road cyclists and motorbike riders know well.

Made for two

Couples, mostly, and anyone who wants quiet and a view more than a high street. Bring a car; you will be driving to the coast to eat.