At Sawday’s, we’ve spent more than 30 years finding special places to stay across the UK and Europe, curating a unique collection of holiday cottages, creative B&Bs, luxury hotels and country pubs with rooms. Each has been inspected by our experienced team and chosen for the hosts who love what they do, and for the thoughtful details that make a stay feel personal. 

You might sip coffee on a Paris rooftop overlooking the Louvre, sleep in a converted cable hut on a remote Scottish headland or wake up in a colourful seaside pod that’s part of an artists’ collective in Somerset. But what connects all our places is a rare blend of warmth and individuality over uniformity – the kind that can’t be replicated or mass-produced. 

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Shortcut to special places

Carefully selected self-catering homes, hotels, pubs and B&Bs

Personally inspected

We've visited every place and chosen them for their warmth and character

UK & Europe

Our collection spans the UK, Ireland, France, Italy, Spain and Portugal

No fuss from us

You book direct with the owners, with no fees or fuss from us

 

Explore places to stay by type

Whether you’re dreaming of a stylish holiday cottage, a boutique hotel or a cosy pub with rooms , our handpicked collection has something for every kind of escape. Every place has been personally inspected, so you can be sure it’s full of character, comfort and a warm welcome.

Holiday cottages

Holiday cottages

Pubs with rooms

Pubs with rooms

Gîtes in France

Gîtes in France

Hotels

Hotels

Bed & Breakfast

Bed & Breakfast

Large holiday homes

Large holiday homes

Agriturismo

Agriturismo

Villas in Europe

Villas in Europe

Villas in Italy

Villas in Italy

Looking for your next European holiday?

France

France

Italy

Italy

Spain

Spain

Portugal

Portugal

Personally inspected, chosen with care

Our inspectors travel from highland crofts to Mediterranean fincas, meeting the owners and feeling the atmosphere for themselves. We’re not box tickers – we’re travellers, searching for that moment when a place feels right.  

We look for the thoughtful details: hand thrown mugs stacked beside the kettle, the dog-eared OS map hanging by the door, or the guestbook filled with notes that read like letters to a friend. That’s when we know a place is truly special. 

 

The most loved stays this season

These are the stays our guests are loving this season, chosen for their warm welcomes, thoughtful details and unforgettable settings. Personally inspected and full of character, they’re the places people return to, recommend to friends and wish they’d booked for longer.

Hyll - Gallery

Hyll

Chipping Campden, Gloucestershire
Saltmoore - Gallery

Saltmoore

Whitby, Yorkshire

Why book with Sawday’s?

✓ You’ll speak to real people who love what they do. No hidden fees, no middlemen, just genuine hospitality. 

✓ We champion independent hosts and responsible travel that supports local communities and the environment. 

✓ We’ve spent decades finding special and unusual places to stay across the UK and Europe that make travel personal. The result is a collection of soulful spots you won’t find anywhere else. 

Be the first to discover our newest places

Freshly inspected and newly added to our collection, these are the latest places we’ve fallen for. From hidden countryside retreats to characterful city stays, discover somewhere new before everyone else does.

Le Beau Pierre - Gallery

Le Beau Pierre

Mauvezin-sur-Gupie, Lot-et-Garonne
Ice House - Gallery

Ice House

Laide, Highland

 

About our special places to stay

Self-catering places & cottages

Even when they aren’t there hosting you, the person who created the place you’re staying makes a huge difference. The ones we work with go the extra mile to make you feel at home the moment you arrive. You might find welcome hampers of local food, a hand-written note, or great suggestions for things to do in the area. The place might be stocked with art, soaps and ceramics from nearby producers in the area, possibly even from the owners themselves. It will give you a sense of being a place to live, not just somewhere to keep your things for a few days.

 

Hotels

What we love in a hotel is when indulgent comfort and top-quality services are provided with an air of warmth and friendliness in a setting of creativity and character. We want our places to be everything a chain hotel isn’t – independently run, uniquely styled and possessed of a genuine human touch. We work only with small-scale businesses and where we do have owners of multiple properties, we know that they’re pouring the same amount of love into each of their places. There’s no checklist of facilities when we inspect a new hotel, or any place on Sawday’s. We simply visit, take a look around and make sure things are not just up to standard, but have a touch of magic about them.

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Pubs with rooms

Sometimes, you find yourself in a pub you never want to leave. The food is great, the beer is local, the staff are friendly and the whole place has that gentle buzz of people truly relaxing. So, why should you have to leave? Why not stay right there? That’s what our pubs with rooms collection is all about – hanging out in the bar or by the fire a little too long into the night, then wandering off to bed and waking up to a fine breakfast.

 

 

Bed & Breakfast

Where does the line between a boutique hotel and a beautiful B&B fall? The difference, in many cases, is only in the number of rooms, as you get the same warm welcome and the same generosity of spirit infusing everything. The B&B, perhaps, has a more familiar feel, like sharing in a family home for a few days of true local life. You tend to get chatting to the owners and learn about them and the area, which is the best way to make those little discoveries that turn a few days away into a memorable holiday. Our B&Bs are run by everyone from artists and potters, to retired architects and farmers whose family have been on the land for generations. Each of them has their own story to tell and their own way of welcoming you to the place they love.

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