Coffee served in silver cups & cakes are homemade in this duke’s palace, a throwback to the Moorish kingdom - a Sawday's Community Champion

A fuss-free, informal place to stay with family - your own entrance straight from the garden and tasty breakfasts set up in a summer house

A sprint from London: a Cotswolds pub modernised with sympathy and care. Happy staff, organic ales and food, gorgeous rooms

Come for a restorative and restful stay on a wine estate with a beautiful landscaped garden and engaging owners who make you delicious meals

A lovely old stone house with a covered veranda and sparkling pool in a small hilltop hamlet overlooking a lush forested valley

Come to be inspired - by the buildings, the art, the concept and the rich history. You should be very comfortable too, and well fed

A gorgeous wooden-clad off-grid cottage deep in the National Park with far-reaching views, unfussy interiors and spoiling extra treatments

Three family friendly gites with a contemporary feel, a saltwater pool, national trails to wander and wellness retreats on offer

A clutch of airy properties, most with their own jasmine-scented terraces arranged around a funky pool

The views are breathtaking over forest and field from this lovely barn conversion on a working farm, for special gatherings

A lovely, spacious 1830s house in the heart of arty Westport with nearly an acre of garden, an apple orchard and the river running past

A light and airy barn conversion, very comfortable and rural, sitting on a hill with views to the south overlooking the Stour valley

An old farm worker's cottage, niftily done up and nicely remote, with walking and fishing on the doorstep, four miles from Hadrian's Wall

Beautiful views over Bantry Bay from this thoughtfully restored house with stylish rooms, gardens and woodland – a wonderful escape

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

Relaxed, bohemian vibe out in the wilds yet close to civilization. An organic garden and woodland yurt add to the convivial, communal idyll

A small, rural cottage high in the wooded hills with long views, your own private pool, utter peace and quiet and a superb restaurant nearby