Walk, ride, bike or canoe, climb a mountain, head for Hay, then return to a comfortable bar, warm bedrooms and delicious food

Peaceful Basque farmhouse turned smart country B&B, only 20 minutes from restaurants and museums in Bilbao and unspoiled sandy beaches

One of four wooden-clad off-grid cottages, sleek and calm indoors, high up in the Cheviot Hills and with stunning views over the valley

Elegant stable cottage in the heart of Northumberland, with lush gardens and cosy interiors. Explore castles, coast and countryside

Cross an ancient stone bridge to a 1790s estate cottage, completely on its own down a little-used green lane and with the river rushing by

This is a superb base to explore the island's glittering bays, vibrant coastal cities, mountains, valleys and forests

Anglo-Irish meets Italian and Indian; the owners have peppered this charming home with furniture and artefacts from their broad travels

A delightful house & converted 19th-century barn a short jaunt to the unspoilt beaches of the spectacular Anglesey coast

Remote off-grid cottage 1400 feet above sea level in Northumberland National Park, with incredible night skies

A Victorian farm steading cleverly repurposed as an open-plan holiday home with bright, colourful interiors, deep in the Perthshire hills

Hilltop farmhouse converted into a light and spacious, contemporary country house where vintage and modern happily mix. Stunning views, too

Comfortable, traditional, accessible and in the grounds of an old rectory with meadows and the river Frome nearby for summer dips

Come for a traffic-free medieval hamlet in sleepy Maremma with easy-going hosts, a beautiful garden and views over the valley

Come for a spot of high-end cossetting with big, beautiful bedrooms, good food and far-reaching views in the Northumberland National Park

A wisteria-laden pergola shades the sunny side of the farmhouse - in gentle olive country near the Sibillini Park, not far from the Adriatic

Get away from it all in 'old' France, where melons taste like melons & hikes start from the door. This rural bolthole is a serious treat

This small hotel with pool has elegant communal spaces, spoiling bedrooms, kind staff, delicious food and panoramic mountain views

A period manor and pretty rooms in old stables: a quiet base for Pas-de-Calais and Picardie. Madame loves the house, animals, story-telling