Feel at ease in a lovely old townhouse filled with pictures and personality and including a separate loft apartment

This cottage is stylish and serene, beautifully transformed from an old farm building – come for golf, beaches, walks and bird-watching

A very comfortable, pretty cottage, safe for dogs and young children, surrounded by garden and mature woodland on the Badminton Estate

Great taste – in decor and food – and a delicious heated pool. Views swoop over field and valley; trails, villages, wineries tempt

Near Mont St Michel, an 18th-century 'maison de plaisance' in historic grounds run by a charming family. Don't miss the table d'hôte!

Rooms are good value, breakfast is taken overlooking the garden and there's superb veggie food next door - a Sawday's Community Champion

Creative owners have made a gorgeous, arty space for couples or a small group of friends; good beaches and Salcombe are close

A beautiful cream stone building in the grounds of a grand château, with a large and view-filled outdoor terrace for peaceful dawdling

A marvellous spot overlooking Rutland Water for this 1760 former hunting lodge with good seasonal British food and very comfortable bedrooms

Cosy cottage on a working farm just ten miles from Edinburgh with spectacular views, walks from the door and a wood-fired sauna

Elegant, charming home in leafy, peaceful garden - pâtisserie courses and good dinners. Champagne vineyards and historic Provins are nearby

Ski in winter, walk and cycle in summer - return to unbeatable hospitality, warm, large and comfortable bedrooms with views, robust food

A spacious, luxurious family retreat, remote but close to Audierne. Watch surfers shoot the waves as seagulls wheel above

Glass-and-timber doors bathe you with light, gaze at big skies and the river Dart lapping. Sublime year round, it's one of our favourites

A very peaceful, family-run hotel on the shores of Lake Garda with rose and jasmine-scented gardens for summer dinners by candlelight

A sweet bolthole around a courtyard on a smallholding, extremely comfortable, bright and spacious inside and with a communal garden

Character and quirk in old and new design and furnishing – private terraces, a shared pool, great walking, cycling and wine-tasting

Another bright, beamed and history-filled place to stay on the smart Upton Cressett estate with walks from the door and much comfort within