Location, location, location - you can't beat it, so look past the dated kitchen and bathrooms and enjoy this light, bright, coastal home

A hilltop setting for this ancient fortress with an illustrious past. You stay in apartments or farmhouses inside or outside the walls

A serene restaurant-hotel on Chesil beach, with a perfect view of the big blue sea. How restorative can a hotel be?

A foodie and friendly reinvigorated old pub, with floor to ceiling estuary views. Bring the dog and hit the coastal path

A hop from the Côte d'Azur is this elegant home: bring friends, explore the garden, curl up on the sofa, dip in the heated pool

Delightful hamlet of beautifully restored cottages with a pool, surrounded by fields, forest and deer. The perfect spot for a digital detox

A bright and airy 50s townhouse in a residential suburb with large, light bedrooms and a sparkling pool – cycle into gorgeous countryside

A warm retreat in a charming Sussex backwater, with a changing menu of fabulous food, and well-furbished bedrooms upstairs

A cottage to help you feel restored and refreshed; uninterrupted views of the coast, a hamper of local produce and wildlife spotting.

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

Come for the great outdoors and wrap-around views of Muncaster Fell and Scafell Pike from this warm, bright and spacious Passivhaus

After a day touring châteaux, return to this pretty, very comfortable cottage with private terrace and a garden filled with birdsong

Wonky floors and handmade beds in a restored coaching inn for 4, 6 or 8 - sociable evenings round the farmhouse table, walks from the door

Near vibrant market towns, this lovely cottage on a rural estate with views of Pen y Fan is a delicious escape from the hurly burly

Bright and spacious barn for two and a baby on the South Downs Way, close to Brighton and the coast

A handsome old country manor house in the heart of the Loire castles surrounded by parkland, forests, lakes, small hamlets, vineyards and châteaux

An elegant house with ancient roots and a shimmering pool – explore the Charente countryside, drive to lovely Angoulême

Authenticity and originality combine at this family chateau with its panelled rooms, theatrical flourishes and charming candlelit dinners