Coastal retreats

For families who love a Great British beach holiday, this beach-side cottage on Hayling Island near Portsmouth is just the ticket

It's worth the schlep up the hill to get to this calm oasis of a B&B with homemade crêpes at breakfast and a huge glass veranda with views

A delightfully untouched and simple cottage and garden for old-fashioned family seaside holidays just a short walk to Mawgan Porth beach

A serene apartment for 2 in the old fisherman's quarter in Olhão, close to amazing beaches. A special place for nature lovers and foodies

A beguiling retreat for a couple or a family of four – feel cosy and secluded in a thatched cottage close to the coast

A stone's throw from the river Dart, a lovely family and dog-friendly apartment, great for walks, cycles, making friends, learning to sail

Glass-and-timber doors bathe you with light, gaze at big skies and the river Dart lapping. Sublime year round, it's one of our favourites

A fine old 1920s wooden house with all its original features and one and a half acres of view-filled gardens leading down to Mylor Creek

Close to Atlantic beaches and Moorish Tavira, a traditional summer home next to the peaceful shore front of the Ria Formosa

A house on a hill (El Nido means The Nest) built in the Moorish style surrounded by sea views and the green hills of the Granada coastline

On a magical peninsular in west Galloway, land of sea and cows, 2 stylish cottages & a farmhouse perfect for nature-loving families...

A peaceful retreat for families in a wooded valley, barbecues and outdoor eating, fields to wander, streams to splash in, and wide beaches

A delightfully Lilliputian Georgian cottage with all mod cons at the end of a terrace just a short walk to shops, cafés and the beach

Stay a while... lulled by lapping sea and fragrant hanging gardens - cool, light, balconied, classic, intimate, unpretentious

Come to stay in a fine old townhouse with elegant proportions, high ceilings and a rambling, English-style garden close to Mont Saint-Michel

Family cottage within 25 acres of fields, garden and orchard with fresh eggs to collect, wellies for walking and animals roaming the farm

A spacious, luxurious family retreat, remote but close to Audierne. Watch surfers shoot the waves as seagulls wheel above

A lovely old thatched pub in a tiny hamlet on the North Devon/Cornwall border with beaches and the sea a short walk