Enjoy a bucolic setting (hike, ride, cycle) near medieval Vannes, a short hop from the sea – and lively conversation with friendly hosts

A short stroll from the centre of historic Wimborne, a big Georgian house with beautiful interiors, original features and a lovely garden

A charming base in historic Beaulieu - expect delicious food, traditional country-house interiors, and walks that start from the front door

Get away from it all in 'old' France, where melons taste like melons & hikes start from the door. This rural bolthole is a serious treat

An elegant, super central bolthole for two (or three): stroll everywhere, hop on a vaporetto, sit in piazzas drinking cappuccino, live like a local

Come with friends for a cookery course, or with the kids, and enjoy the creative feel of the place - and the food! Venice 40 mins by train

Throw open French windows to this sleek self-catering space, with off-street parking. Walk to the beach & the pub, visit historic Chichester

An 18th-century watermill with millrace and pond, now a smart B&B with a swimming pool and pretty gardens, run by charming English hosts

Return to warming fires after hiking in Ireland's highest mountains. Two traditional cottages on the outskirts of pretty Killorglin

A charming 17th-century cottage in a quaint village with views and the owners' pub, farm shop, Wellness Barn and brewery just a short walk

This 300-year-old Cotswold pub, the hub of picture-book Sapperton from which there are glorious walks, is a superb place to eat and stay

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

Artistic souls will like it here, and those who enjoy shared meals & getting to know other people in dramatic countryside; Arezzo is 40 km

Choose between airy bedrooms up an elegant stair, or magnificent rooms at garden-level with private terraces. Find sweetness and warmth

Five tranquil apartments surrounded by Tuscan countryside just over half an hour's drive from Siena - hire them all for a group holiday

A babbling brook, the sound of birdsong and centuries of history steeped into the walls of this medieval barn, plus a heated indoor pool

A comfortable and light-filled converted stone barn in the pretty Vendée, a quiet and rural spot but just half a mile from town

A surprisingly roomy interior for this pretty chocolate-box cottage in the middle of the village, just a ten-minute walk from Lulworth Cove