Eschew the crowds for your own slice of bliss in this ancient hamlet with village green - self-catering with a hotel feel and dreamy pool

A charming renovated stone gîte only 15km from Bergerac with a large outdoor pool, pretty gardens and walks and cycle rides from the door

A stunning château with huge rooms, pretty balconies with views, peaceful garden. Super owners, excellent dinners - and child-friendly too

A joy for foodies, peace seekers and lovers of period architecture… note the Honduran mahogany banister with inlaid jet and pearl

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

Wild and peaceful small hotel bordering National Park of Guadarrama. Listen to birdsong, hike in the sierra, spend the day in Segovia

Bring boots, maps, your dog and an appetite for high places and deep comfort in this restored farm conversion

A shady terrace runs the full length of this old barn, overlooking magnificent trees and fields of sheep. Riberac is a 10-minute drive

Take your pick from guided horse-trekking to grand banqueting at this traditional château; drive to explore WWI history and the lovely coast

A charming comfy cottage with wood burner, delicious hilly views, walks radiating from the door. We didn’t want to leave!

Pops of colour and neon signs bring fun to this smart and warm family home near Brancaster beach

A really well thought-out escape for a small family with children. A big garden, pool, petanque court and play barn for indoor fun

An exquisitely restored 500-year-old inn, where the accent is very much on food, reared and grown nearby and with very comfortable rooms

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

The central part of a much larger building in a 17th-century hamlet with bright, spacious rooms, shared pool and glorious private gardens

Stylish B&B near the fashionable Chartrons quarter. A charming host, spacious rooms, a courtyard garden and delicious breakfasts

Luxuriate in style at this central Lecce palazzo with gorgeous rooms, delicious breakfasts (lunch & dinner by arrangement). Walk everywhere

A wonderful green getaway with wrap-around views of Norfolk nature; walk Weavers’ Way, birdwatch at Blakeney, enjoy the coast at Cromer