Fall in love with this riverside village, lost in a valley in lower Normandy, and this sunny house for couples or families

A hugely seductive and stylish special place - with magnificent views, pool and bikes, vineyards and hilltop villages to visit

If you want to come to Venice as an open-hearted traveller rather than a tourist then this is the place for you - just walk to everything

A clutch of airy properties, most with their own jasmine-scented terraces arranged around a funky pool

A really friendly French family home, steeped in history and tradition with delicious home-grown food, a lovely garden and peaceful pool

A 17th-century traditional Welsh longhouse in a very sheltered spot facing south and with a pretty garden surrounded by fields and meadows

Achingly trendy, a design-lover's dream with infinity pool, wine on the terrace, pampering spa and a sunny bay at your feet – stunning

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

Explore the coastal paths on foot or by bike, or simply sunbathe next to the pool... Leafy gardens, comfortable rooms and excellent dinners

Come for a sense of complete peace surrounded by country and coast with wonderful interiors to boot – a bolthole for two (plus two)

Steps from the sea in get-away-from-it-all scenery – half an hour’s walk from St Ives’ arty heart. Sleeps 4 with pull-out beds for 2 more

Delightful little antique-filled cottage with large walled garden and an allotment near Versailles. Gardeners will be happy

A short stroll from the centre of historic Wimborne, a big Georgian house with beautiful interiors, original features and a lovely garden

Once a coach house, now a split-level place to stay – you can walk to the river and it's just a short hop to central London

A cosy, courteous, family-run hotel with ‘chocolatines’ and cherry jams at breakfast, Basque dishes at dinner, and gorgeous rolling views

A striking, newly thatched and revamped pub with spoiling bedrooms, an inviting bar and menus overseen by Raymond Blanc - you'll eat well

A striking cabin, drenched in light, with views over open countryside to the Sugar Loaf in the distance

A peaceful, very stylish bolthole for 2 on the doorstep of glorious Holyrood Park, with Edinburgh’s sights a stroll away