Dinner fresh from the garden with your creative hosts is an absolute delight. Roam unspoilt countryside, visit châteaux and vineyards galore

The view is pure Canaletto, the vibe is modern and laid back. Just minutes from all Venice’s best bits, but with far fewer tourists

Come for good architecture, thoughtful design and much space for relaxing: swimming, massages, hammam and sauna, beautiful bedrooms

Anouk & Gilles have fine-tuned their welcome. Lounge by the pool and dine exquisitely within their landscaped park

A cluster of traditional farm buildings making up three holiday cottages in very attractive grounds with fruit trees, meadows and woodland

A hideaway for two on an old farm, gifted to The National Trust for Jersey, with a pretty walled garden and circled by verdant countryside

The views are sensational, the bedrooms full of charm and higgledy-piggledy beams. Sip Perigord Noir on the terrace and amble to the market

A fine country manor house on the edge of a village, peacefully surrounded by gardens and trees, and close to the D-Day landing beaches

A comfy cottage for two in the quiet, leafy outskirts of Aix with easy access to the city and a kind, attentive owner nearby

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

In a quaint village with a bakery, brasserie and shops, a handsome gîte with a wonderful pool and fashion museum

In a small town in Salento is a cool southern house of elegant simplicity, ideal for a large family, near to beaches & 45 minutes from Lecce

An 18th-century stone cottage sitting in the glorious Yorkshire Dales. Nature-lovers and walkers will be well pleased and so will their dog

It's steeped in history and a joy to visit. Explore the vast pistes of Les Portes du Soleil... return to log fires and house-party dinners

An airy converted barn with beautiful woodwork and countryside views. Reach riverside restaurants and St Malo within a 15-minute drive

A sweet little gîte for two in the centre of a dreamy medieval village. Happily private but with loads to explore from your door

Come down to the Meon Valley and be (very gently) nudged towards a better way of living - a Sawday's Community Champion

An adorable whitewashed crofter's cottage on the Wern Estate with pretty gardens, a bird-filled woodland and glorious walks from the door