A sweet retreat for a nature-loving couple, with soul-searching views and the smell of the sea. Logs and Breton cider are on the house...

You'll feel ensconced in the countryside in this cosy cottage with a private garden overlooking the little vineyard and a secluded pool

A pretty stone single-storey house, now renovated beautifully into a comfortable hideaway with wonderful views to woodland and river

Once a pub, now a friendly home, with all you need for a market town break. Park the car (or leave at home) – everything is on the doorstep

Come for a huge dollop of peace and quiet in gorgeous countryside. Take long walks, enjoy the views, return to much comfort and space

Chatty Madame is a superb cook, and her pretty house and garden in a quiet Yvelines village are equally delicious. Zip to Paris by train

A charming white-washed house with a pool & lovely hillside views from the terrace: sleep out here under a star-studded sky on warm evenings

A traditional Breton stone cottage, two minutes from the sea, with a large, leafy garden and glamping with activities in the summer months

An immaculately restored cottage with a blissful sun room, private terrace, gardens, pool and orchard for a warm and peaceful hideaway

Four family-friendly self-catering casitas and an original cortijo in wildlife-rich acres near the sandy Costa de la Luz

A beautifully restored cottage and extra wing for 3 - 4 on Bodmin Moor for families, outdoor types and lovers of real countryside – dogs can come too

A dear little cottage with many comforts and a private garden, off the beaten track and surrounded by mountains, valleys and trees

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

Your friendly hosts offer you stylish bedrooms, swims in the heated pool, and wonderful dinners and wines. Cahors is only a 10-minute drive

A wonderfully simple and modern studio with stunning sea views in an almost Jurassic landscape, dotted with the owner's sculptures

Manor house in the grounds of a quintessential 18th-century French château with pretty gardens and lots of space just 3kms from Bayeux

At the foot of the Cambrian Mountains, an ancient whitewashed cottage with cosy, light-flooded interiors – a perfect rural bolthole for two

Swap the mêlée for privacy and wonderful views. Delicious meals, an outdoor hot tub and Portes du Soleil skiing on your doorstep