Three spacious manor apartments with views for big gatherings of family or friends. Walk to the beach or the pub, play tennis and croquet

A rustic-chic bolthole with bird's eye views to gaze at from your bedroom and the beautiful garden, tucked in a quaint hamlet in Maremma

A deliciously rural stone house with charmingly simple rustic-chic interiors and saline pool - an hour from Perugia

A stone built 18th-century tower in a pretty valley dotted with fruit trees for quiet and relaxed days recuperating from life in the city

Escape to mountains, sea and sky, simple rooms and lovely food. Walk, swim, read, write, nurture your soul

An enchanting hideaway with sensational views in a flowery English semi-wild country garden, near Sissinghurst and Great Dixter

A lovely 1910 village house, deep in sleepy countryside, with delightful owners, delicious home cooking and a pretty garden for lazy days

High-up, simple apartments, pools with fabulous views; kids play-things and donkeys, the glittering coast, Rapallo and Portofino down below

Lovely slice of the Mediterranean with splendid rooms in deepest Cheshire. Sip an aperitif on the sunny terrace

3 lovely cottages in the heart of Cognac vines for cosy nights by the fire and summer barbecues by the pool

Ease through a beautiful wrought iron gate to a courtyard and an elegant 1700s creamy stone holiday house, part of the château estate

If you want to come to Venice as an open-hearted traveller rather than a tourist then this is the place for you - just walk to everything

Choose the atmospheric early Georgian house or the garden bedrooms, all have views, Paul's welcome is genuine and his dinners delicious

A natural idyll made even better by friendly owners. Bask in the mountain views, explore astonishing Asturias, settle into the slow pace

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

A beguiling retreat for a couple or a family of four – feel cosy and secluded in a thatched cottage close to the coast

Converted stables in the grounds of a manor house in a peaceful village just outside Banbury with lovely walking in the Cherwell Valley

Step back in time at this wonderfully authentic château, loved deeply by its owners - 25km from Beaune and the Route des Grands Crus