Secluded place with home-grown food, much peace and walks by the river for a couple (or small family). Courses and solo retreats too

Superbly comfortable house with beamed rooms, lovely views, club-like morning room, antiques, terrace, pool, fitness centre and lily pond

A cosy and pretty old cottage for rest or romance, with garden and pool in a small hamlet surrounded by walnut orchards and mixed woodland

Unwind in glorious Northumberland with beaches, proper dunes, ancient castles and two cosy cottages with open fires, sea views and gardens

A peaceful retreat in an unspoilt woody corner of Sussex. Bring dogs and children for fabulous walking on the South Downs Way

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!

Ensconce yourselves in the Black Périgord and stay in the East Wing of a 16th-century castle with private garden and surrounding parkland

Good restaurants, beach walks, a grand welcome for dogs: that’s Whitstable. Bring friends and stay in this smart house close to it all

Thatched cottage perfect for families; surfing at Croyde, walks on Exmoor, sunny barbecues in the garden and cosying up by the wood-burner

Airy interiors, good local food and a blissful rural setting for this refurbished inn, popular with locals and with a happy, bustling vibe

A magnificent medieval tower in the grounds of an 18th-century château sitting in a dreamy valley. Come for superb gardens and architecture

A light, bright, art-filled space with private garden on a quiet residential street just a short walk from shops, markets and good food

Towering 5 storeys above lively Palermo, a gracious B&B with sunlit rooms, lovely Sicilian hosts and breakfast in fine china on the terrace

Independent B&B in an ancient hamlet with modern interiors, immaculate bedrooms and a pleasant wooden terrace for sunny days

In a chocolate-box village just an hour on the train, and a short hop in a taxi, from London is this foodie inn with pretty bedrooms

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

A light, bright and contemporary B&B in a quiet spot, with a garden overlooking the sea, the oyster beds and the passing boats

A modern, architect-designed renovation of a 19th-century building, sitting in harmony with nature yet only a short drive from Bordeaux