Rooms in an old palazzo in the historic centre of town, with a swimming pool, restaurant and café, and lovely beaches a short drive away

Medieval manor house and busy farm. A welcoming atmosphere, big bedrooms, breakfast in the baronial great hall by the cosy log fire

Come to be doused in nature, tradition and rare Vino Santo at this soulful retreat, girded by orchards between the Dolomites and Lake Garda

Elegant Regency rectory full of charm, with walks in all directions, views to gaze at and kind, generous hosts. A rare place

Family-friendly hotel on Ullswater with a pool and a variety of bedrooms, some super-cool - swim in the lake, walk in the hills, eat well

Glamour, warmth and style in a renovated wine warehouse in a cool quarter of Bordeaux - France’s most popular city after Paris

Spacious rooms and a cosy apartment a stone’s throw from Avignon’s historic sights. Retire to the heated pool after a busy day sightseeing

One of Scotland’s coolest hotels waits at the end of a four-mile track - you find loch, mountain and sky, and Tom’s fabulous food

A 1980s Catalan mas built in a traditional style, with garden and pool, surrounded by olive trees and vineyards near the Spanish border

A warm retreat in a charming Sussex backwater, with a changing menu of fabulous food, and well-furbished bedrooms upstairs

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

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

Slowly does it at a rustic haven run with infectious enthusiasm and kindness by a truffle hunter with a passion for nature and food

On the outskirts of Marazion, this timber clad house perched above the sea is a super pad for romantic couples

Beautiful Noto is 4 miles from the Ionian Sea, and this creative renovation, with lush garden, stands above the throng. Heaven in Sicily

A swishly renovated detached hideaway up a hill, surrounded by vineyards and with a covered deck for sweeping views just outside Beaune

A rustic and elegant farmhouse retreat in Provence with a pool, vineyards and wildlife-filled pond – a launchpad for the Luberon