A stone built 18th-century tower in a pretty valley dotted with fruit trees for quiet and relaxed days recuperating from life in the city

Lodge and gardens – superbly designed, immaculate, fresh, eco friendly – rest in unspoilt Picardy. Anglo-French hosts take turns to cook

Come for sea air, independent shops, great places to eat and this quirky cottage with plenty of room and a sunny walled garden

Kate makes you feel at home the moment you enter her great big beloved house - full of books, guitars and a piano, antiques and huge spaces

Rambling casitas in a mountain hamlet, with a rustic bar, big shared pool and golf course, surrounded by birds, bougainvillea and views

Two elegant village houses for big happy gatherings of friends and family with a yoga studio, spacious courtyard and glistening pool

A romantic cottage for two in the Pentland Hills, with views for miles and your own private garden with a wood-fired hot tub

Two charming cottages a stroll from the Coast Path, surf school, shop, pub and restaurant. Take both cottages for a big family get-together

A taste of old Italy in this off-the-beaten-track rustic house on three levels, exquisitely restored and with elegant designer furnishings

Fresh, inviting bedrooms with leafy garden views and a pretty church next door. Moffat's spectacular Grey Mare's Tail waterfall nearby

Historic village inn with wonderful cooking and a Provençal-style courtyard garden; drive to the Jurassic Coast in half an hour

Gloriously green rural self-catering apartments with pool and lovely, friendly owners

A grand-looking stone building with fabulous views across the Derwent Valley from the terrace and garden – find quirky rooms and great food

High on a hill in the Tyne Valley, undisturbed except by birds singing and the wind whistling; views swoop down to a magical landscape

A Victorian farm steading cleverly repurposed as an open-plan holiday home with bright, colourful interiors, deep in the Perthshire hills

This is a superb base to explore the island's glittering bays, vibrant coastal cities, mountains, valleys and forests

A niftily restored, open-plan, beamed hayloft, just the ticket for romantics, with gorgeous views of fields and open countryside

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