Simple rooms on a spotless farm, delightful hosts, delicious fruit tarts at breakfast on Sundays. The perfect stopover en route to Calais

Former blacksmith’s workshop in a chocolate-box corner of the New Forest, where clematis climbs the trellis and all you hear are the birds

Dine in the orangery on excellent cuisine, or take breakfast in bed with the shutters thrown wide. Simply delightful

Perfect for lovers of the quintessentially English cottage - carefully renovated and classily stylish - a ramble to nearest pub

A beautiful 17th-century village inn on the edge of the Lowther Estate: lovely bedrooms, delicious food and the Lakes at your feet

An island of oyster farms, salt pans and white beaches, woolly donkeys, countless push-bikes and the odd celeb – we love the Ile de Ré!

Gorgeous scenic views from this relaxed and friendly B&B tucked in a tiny hamlet in the Dordogne near Bergerac

Irresistible for art, design and heritage-lovers, bird-watchers and those who love to explore Norfolk's wide open spaces

Victorian country house for 8–15 with gardens overlooking the Howgill Fells for happy reunions with family and friends

Vast rooms, thick stone walls and ancient flagged floors skilfully modernised to create comfort, surrounded by romantic château gardens

B&B rooms, some with kitchenettes, in a lush garden setting with a river running behind. The pretty village is on your doorstep

A 300-year-old cottage and a secluded, magical setting next to the longest sea loch in the UK, for walkers, dreamers and nature lovers

A bright and beautiful six-bedroom house with lovely mature gardens in the glorious Lake District: bring your entire tribe plus the dog

Delicious vegetarian cooking, a pool, lemon groves and hazy views of the Hyblaean mountains make a perfect escape near Cassibile

Escape to your own snug bolthole above a beautiful hall. Creative village community, tasty breakfast delivered, come and go as you please

It's not often you get an entire hamlet to yourselves but here it is – 10 traditional stone houses with big communal spaces in rural bliss

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