Spoiling bedrooms, fabulous food and a lovely position lost in the hills make this Lakeland inn hard to resist - bring your walking boots

What do you do with a down-at-heel roadside inn? You get Mhor to come and turn it into a quirky base with their funky style and lovely food

Sleek, smart apartments on the first floor of a 19th-century building in Verona's most fashionable residential/commercial neighbourhood

An elegant Burgundian townhouse with pool on the fringe of Morvan National Park in Côte d'Or. Dijon, with Beaune and Chablis an easy drive

A beautifully restored townhouse in the heart of Amboise, steps from Leonardo da Vinci's last home and the great Château Royal

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

Flop in a hammock and be lulled by Mediterranean scents and breezes, relax in an ancient Trullo – come here for raw beauty not for frills

Tucked away from the busy glamour of the Riviera, come and unwind, from two to twelve people, in a peaceful garden and stone farmhouse

By a bubbling brook in the Mendips, close to Bath and Bristol, a wonderfully revived and welcoming inn with smart rooms and scrumptious food

Visit Florence, Arezzo, Siena… or revel in the beauty and peace of Casa Zia, surrounded by wilderness and lovely birdsong

Proper village pub with much-praised food and cosy rooms; country walks lead from the door and Oxford is half an hour away

A small, charming house with ravishing sea views within walking distance of a bohemian coastal village at the foot of the Teix mountain

Generous simplicity and organic farm cooking in this rustic Tuscan farm with library, yoga, family apartments and natural lily-dotted pond

An 18th-century cottage for four on a working sheep farm: walk the Pentland Hills, get the bus to Edinburgh for culture

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 striking 200-year-old coaching inn in a sleepy village with a classic, traditional pub feel, superb food and wines, pretty bedrooms

Imperious old coaching inn lost in deep country with a river to fish, five-mile views, delicious rooms and some very tasty food

Come to this cosy barn down a winding lane for a back-to-nature escape: hike the Black Mountains, splash in the stream, gaze at the views