In the heart of beautiful Siena, it's just like staying with a friend, as hostess Paola chats whilst preparing local produce for breakfast

A welcoming country-house hotel that’s popular with locals and visitors alike - good food, stylish rooms and an airy restaurant wait

Dark skies and extensive views from this romantic hideaway cottage. Walk down to the loch, snuggle up by the wood-burner… a cosy retreat

Picturesque cottage in the grounds of a grand manor, lovingly and creatively restored by its welcoming English owner

Heart-soaring Pyrenean views, animals roaming, natural materials in simple rural rooms, organic food: it’s a superbly welcoming eco-lodge

Serious art, lovely lighting, great sound system and a fat wood-burner belting out the heat at this super place for families or friends

Come for big skies, loch views, much wildlife, acres of forest and a charming wood-clad cottage from which to explore such a remote spot

A Renaissance farmhouse in a secret Welsh valley with a stunning garden. Sleep under soaring beams, enjoy peace and warm hospitality

Groups will love this 18th-century winemaster’s house and tower. There’s a hillside infinity pool, valley views and a private boulodrome

Delicious food, stylish bedrooms and very helpful staff come hand in hand at this buzzing little inn that stands on the river Avon

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

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

Stylish barn in the Slaughters – footpaths from the door, idyllic Cotswolds villages to explore. Head home for garden drinks and barbecues

A three storey house and garden with sea glimpses in the 'vieux village' named for the Mimosa trees which flower in profusion in winter

Come to the wild Cévennes to hike, ride, kayak down the Hérault river – or just revel in your pretty, generous house, pool and garden space

Come for the great outdoors and wrap-around views of Muncaster Fell and Scafell Pike from this warm, bright and spacious Passivhaus

Bright, cosy cottage off the beaten track between the South Hams and Dartmoor, with good pubs nearby and an en suite ground-floor bedroom

Ease yourself into a rather more gracious lifestyle from this sweet retreat on a historic estate with gorgeous walled gardens