Come for big, peaceful bedrooms with views, delicious home cooked breakfasts and riverside strolls through ancient beech woodland

A splendid supper à la carte (three courses) is included here, together with airy rooms and sweeping gardens. The Solway Firth is close

Five beautiful suites in the south wing of this fairy tale castle, filled with architectural features, family history and much grandeur

Sheep's Head Way is reputedly one of the best walks in Ireland. Come back to roaring fires, a Rayburn, art and style – terrific restorations

Water sports fans and families will love this characterful beachfront house with panoramic ocean views on Brittany's Côtes-d'Armor

A beautifully restored townhouse in the heart of Amboise, steps from Leonardo da Vinci's last home and the great Château Royal

A beautiful little house in a corner of the garden: walk for miles or just to the local pub, barbecue on the deck with its rural views

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

Up in the hills, an amazing family holiday with Lorna and Lee. Weekly paella nights, great pool, lovely walking. Beauty therapies, too...

Ascot is a trot down the road and there's a really cosy, cottagey feel to this quaint 18th-century inn with great food and comfy bedrooms

Provençal charm floats through the ground floor of this 18th-century home in a vineyard near Lorgues. Walk, cycle, swim, enjoy the peace

Enfolded in gentle Dorset hills and surrounded by trees, a perfect wooden hut for 2 near beaches, River Cottage HQ and many beautiful walks

Cosy country cottage for four on an organic farm in the Welsh borders. Wake to the sounds of birds and sheep, walk off supper on rural romps

Welcome to a beautiful space for six in Sicily’s chocolate capital - baroque jewel Modica. Laze in the garden, dip into the pool

Peaceful Highland hideaway on a wooded lochside: spy dolphins and otters, stargaze, and soak up the deep silence

A hideaway for two on an old farm, gifted to The National Trust for Jersey, with a pretty walled garden and circled by verdant countryside

A boutique hotel on the edge of Arcachon Bay. A natural pool, zen gardens, contemporary Eastern-style interiors, and good food await

Come for the rural charm of this cottage. Green as far as the eye can see, near a village surrounded by rivers. Wellies essential