An enviable hideaway on a cobbled street high on a hill, with stunning views next to Galileo's house, the Villa Bardini and gardens

Cast yourselves away to this beautiful island and a bright, spacious apartment with a rooftop terrace bang in the middle of the town square

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

Two homely gîtes sleeping 4 and 2 in rural farm country. Walk to the bakery; drive 15 minutes to Saint-Malo and riverside restaurants

Modest and authentic, a top-floor apartment in an eco-friendly Provençal farmhouse, with dogs and hens. River swims are a stroll away...

Nature lovers will be tempted to this gem of a village cottage in the Duddon Valley – a truly peaceful slice of the Lakes

Come down to the Meon Valley and be (very gently) nudged towards a better way of living - a Sawday's Community Champion

A gentle, calm, immaculate place for an all-season family stay, near wine tastings, castles, caves and canoeing. Everyone loves the Dordogne

With a sauna in the woods and a Nordic bath by the lake, these carefully renovated farm buildings are a lovely slow-living retreat

A luxurious eco-retreat plus extra room in the Space Conker in private woodland with views to the Chaîne des Aravis and Mont Blanc

Colourful coastal apartments and studios where you can be nicely independent, and enjoy a communal café and health club with Art Deco pool

A small, quirky country house hotel with lovely staff, pretty rooms and heavenly food served in a pillared dining room

A compact eco-serene bolthole in bustling Modica's historic heart with glorious views over the baroque rooftops. Beaches are 20 minutes away

Mesmerising sea views from this big comfortable hillside house near Deià with a big pool, verdant gardens and sun-trapping terraces

Old beams and rich history: a dramatic setting for fireside chats, superb breakfasts (home-reared, baked, grown) - and Midsomer Murders

A traditional coaching inn dating from the 18th century with good food served in private and public dining rooms on the Wellington Estate

Come on down to this working farm for delicious organic food, an on-site sourdough bakery and crisp bedrooms in a pretty farmhouse

A lovely old stone house with a covered veranda and sparkling pool in a small hilltop hamlet overlooking a lush forested valley