A popular north Norfolk hotel which has previously been named in the top 10 country hotels in the UK is being sold for more than £8.65 million.

Brendan Hopkins, who has owned The Hoste in Burnham Market for the last seven years, has sold the hotel and spa to The City Pub Group.

The 53-bedroom site was previously named in the top 10 country hotels in the UK by The Guardian and also featured in

The Times Cool Hotel Guide in 2017.

The City Pub Group, which also owns other destinations in Norfolk including The Georgian Townhouse and St Andrews Brew House in Norwich, will take over the running of the hotel later this year on May 1.

The pub will be sold for a minimum of £8.65 million, which will likely increase due to incentives based around sales.

Mr Hopkins said: 'Me and my wife are delighted that The City Pub Group will be taking over as owners.

'We have really enjoyed the last seven years and we feel that this is the best outcome for our staff, our customers, our suppliers, and we are confident that The Hoste is in very good hands.'

Current staff and management at the hotel are set to be kept on.

The City Pub Group recently revealed that its revenue for 2018 rose 22pc from the previous year and that it also opened 11 new pubs last year.

In a statement released by the company, Clive Watson, executive chairman, said: 'We continue to seek new sites to add to our portfolio and we have already earmarked six new pub openings for this year and are on course to meet our target of doubling the size of the estate to around 65-70 pubs by mid-2021.

'We believe the combination of further acquisitions, fine tuning the management of our existing estate and the benefits of our new divisional structure will enhance our performance further.'

The City Pub Group has been approached for further comment.