Like staying in a family home, only with Henri III furniture and rolling green views. Energetic hosts cook, farm, hunt, chat over champagne

An award-winning dog-friendly pub with rooms. Find happy staff, delicious well-sourced food and comfy rooms – great for walkers

This is Somerset at its most quintessential: a thatched roofed, honey-coloured Hamstone cottage with a pretty courtyard garden; sleeps four

An 1800s former watermill, now elegantly converted to give B&B rooms plus a self-catering cottage in the Côte d'Opale, superb for walking

Recharge and reconnect with your creative side in one of Ania's workshops; secret coves, wild swimming and coastal walks are all close

No-nonsense farm conversions with open, airy rooms and good big showers sharing a pool, a playground and fabulous views. Great walks, too

A large and light house sitting by itself in lovely countryside with a big pool, maturing gardens and superb views up to Saignon on the hill

Light-filled retreat full of character and vintage finds, with sparkling wine, cider and farm-fresh produce on your doorstep

Spread out in much style with friends or family in a beautifully renovated Victorian farmhouse at the foot of the Howgill fells

Historic, indulgent, atmospheric – and the Contessa is so warm. Vineyards, restaurants, operas, walks...La dolce vita on Slovenia's border

A gorgeous eco-build set in a wildflower meadow a short walk from thriving Presteigne and with a shepherd’s hut for spillover

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

A Victorian house on a 5000 acre estate, snazzily renovated and tucked down a track with a private lake, in the quieter part of Cumbria

Grand Scottish home with stunning views & a tea-and-shortbread welcome. Historic castles, local festivals, golf, East Lothian beaches abound

A calm, leafy bolthole in one of Paris' most elegant districts. Step out to stylish boutiques, good bakeries – and the Eiffel Tower

A warm, inviting boutique hotel in Shrewsbury’s historic centre; potter about the medieval streets, relax in a sun-catching courtyard

At the heart of fascinating Palermo, splendid aristocratic hosts welcome you to their historic family mansion filled with heirlooms

A 15th-century Venetian palazzo, lovingly restored with stylish rooms overlooking the Grand Canal and a designer's insight into the city