A lovely honey-coloured stone cottage with private walled garden, large terrace and pool, outdoor bath and pergola-covered terrace

Traditional family-run hotel with sitting rooms galore, award-winning food and Snowdon views. High teas and games room for children too

This stylish little art-filled inn has comfortable rooms, is surrounded by good walking countryside and serves delicious food - rest here

Light-filled gites share a lovely pool, with pétanque, ping-pong and bikes to borrow – bring friends and take all three

There’s a Tuscan feel to this lovely, family-friendly place – walk to the sound of cicadas, stargaze, visit vineyards, markets and castles

A stylish, cosy, stone-flagged cottage with vintage and modern furniture, wood-burners, patios and views - and three excellent pubs nearby

Stables turned into bright, comfortable holiday homes in countryside near Battle - for couples and families, whose dogs are very welcome too

Tranquil manor house deep in Bordeaux wine region with six acres of grounds, a tennis court and swimming pool

A cracking English inn with open fires, great food, gorgeous rooms, happy staff, lovely gardens and well-kept English ales

Ease into a slower way of life from this beautiful Tuscan farmhouse surrounded by vineyards in the valley below medieval Montepulciano

A very attractive stone building on a smallholding with all mod cons, a bedroom for stargazing, Guest Farm Shop and pretty communal gardens

Well-positioned winery for the whole of the Bordeaux region. Or stay put and learn about the Duhamels’ super organic Cotes de Bourg wines

Ease yourself into a rather more gracious lifestyle from this sweet retreat on a historic estate with gorgeous walled gardens

A marvellous spot overlooking Rutland Water for this 1760 former hunting lodge with good seasonal British food and very comfortable bedrooms

Perched on a hillside between mountains and sea is this charming house in a modern Spanish style, engulfed by a beautiful garden with views

A picture-perfect village and a beautifully refurbished 17th-century inn with a cracking bar, stylish bedrooms and delicious pub food

A 18th-century house with pool in a small town with friendly owners and a tropical garden of banana, fig and, of course, frangipani

Enjoy fields of lavender and vines as far as the eye can see from this neat cottage, sharing a pool and gorgeous gardens with other guests