A joyful, inviting house on a 15-acre smallholding in Devon. Super food, gracious hosts, delightful bedrooms - leave feeling nourished

An immaculately restored 1500s palazzo, filled with history, art, antiques and books in the buzzing heart of a charming town

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

Fine contemporary interiors within this half-timbered hillside villa, built with natural materials and with a beautiful pool and jacuzzi

Three charming rustic lodges with private gardens and a laid-back vibe in a small rural hamlet surrounded by vines and truffle orchards

An enviable hideaway on a cobbled street high on a hill, with stunning views next to Galileo's house, the Villa Bardini and gardens

The inn is the hub of this thriving village in 'the blue remembered hills' with great food and super rooms - a Sawday's Community Champion

Feel right at home in a thatched farmhouse on South Pool Creek, with cottage garden views, great breakfasts and a good local pub

Generous, fun house, perfect for family gatherings. Head down the hill for sandy beaches or let kids and dogs run wild on the Purbeck coast

A beautiful little house in a corner of the garden: walk for miles or just to the local pub, barbecue on the deck with its rural views

Two family-friendly gites (big groups can take both) with beautiful gardens, sparkling pool, activities for children and peace for parents

Come on down to this working farm for delicious organic food, an on-site sourdough bakery and crisp bedrooms in a pretty farmhouse

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

Swim with frogs in the freshwater pool, breakfast in the sunshine, play boules by moonlight. Châteaux don't get much more rural

Come for a holiday with extras: children’s playground, babysitting, pool, truffle hunting, vineyard, olive grove tours and more

A niftily converted barn with high vaulted ceiling sitting on a hill with wonderful views over a newly-created lake and the Stour Valley

The largest of three secluded cottages that share a gravel courtyard and a beautiful garden with cathedral views

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