A serene retreat in a residential area of Ragusa, with the historic centre just a short distance. Enjoy pool, spa and gardens

A smart B&B in the heart of Beaune sitting quietly in half a hectare of gorgeous gardens; you're well looked after by your charming hosts

A small, family-run boutique hotel sitting right at the foot of Etna with wonderful views, garden, pool and ambrosial Sicilian breakfasts

Serious art, lovely lighting, great sound system and a fat wood-burner belting out the heat at this super place for families or friends

Stylish eco barns with generous hampers - Threshing Barn sleeps 8, Hay Barn 2. Close to village, beach & pub, with friendly owners close by

Chocolate-box cottages in deepest Normandy, owned by bright young things with a passion for organic cuisine and the good life

Traditional accommodation and organic food; handy for Bari but set peacefully in the countryside near Toritto, famed for its almonds

Wine lovers adore this impeccably furnished château; lovely Anne meets and greets, Jean Christophe makes wine and takes charge of tastings

Flop in a hammock and be lulled by Mediterranean scents and breezes, relax in an ancient Trullo – come here for raw beauty not for frills

A lovely villa in the Sóller valley close to stunning beaches, secret coves and a dramatic mountain range. Mallorca never fails to seduce

A luxurious springboard for the wineries, villages and treasures of south Tuscany in the magical Orcia valley - if you can bear to leave it!

Hospitable Jorge and Clotilde love nothing more than sharing their colourful, chaotic old house with guests. The farm produce is fabulous

An artist's house imbued with an understated elegance. Stay for dinner; be charmed by the garden where fruit trees throng, hens loiter

Very private and comfortable rooms with their own entrances at this generous B&B with glorious gardens and views to the Black Mountains

A lovely, spacious 1830s house in the heart of arty Westport with nearly an acre of garden, an apple orchard and the river running past

A Victorian house on a 5000 acre estate, snazzily renovated and tucked down a track with a private lake, in the quieter part of Cumbria

In the city of Trapani, at the foot of Mount Erice, a nobleman's villa with a warm heart and exotic gardens. A hop from the Egadi Islands