Swap the mêlée for privacy and wonderful views. Delicious meals, an outdoor hot tub and Portes du Soleil skiing on your doorstep

A romantic and very comfortable retreat in a smartly converted dairy with a pretty garden, close to the South Downs

By a lake, enclosed by woodland - a contemporary house and barn, full of handmade furniture – laze in a hammock, walk the Jurassic Coast

Tranquil couple's getaway with a shared pool, wonderful views, and lavender plants in every direction. The delightful owners are next door

A fairytale château with ancient roots, now beautifully renovated with lovely bedrooms, terrace, garden and ponds for gracious living

A romantic retreat with a pool in the heart of the wild and wonderful Lot valley - come for bracing hikes, river swims and stunning views

Up and away to a truly wild Welsh experience from this ancient stone house sitting on a ridge, with stunning valley and mountain views

A stylish, canal-side inn – you get Sunday lunch, tow paths that lead into Edinburgh, then a pretty garden and cute rooms

5 houses near Siena to make design-lovers happy; come for the rural solitude of ancient stone farm buildings with urban interiors

Unwind in a beautiful old mill house on the banks of the Célé river, surrounded by high limestone cliffs for outstanding walks and wildlife

A nicely priced inn on Shaftesbury's high street with a warm contemporary style and some excellent food – fine local walking waits

A country house, elegant and unstuffy, at the heart of a working Lazio olive farm. Lunch by the pool or unwind at the hot spring spa

Simple and rustic, this early 1700s farmhouse has warmth and charm, surrounded by countryside in the Perche

A thatched farmhouse only just over the channel near Rouen that’s well hidden in lush gardens, but worth finding for the gourmet food alone

A serene apartment for 2 in the old fisherman's quarter in Olhão, close to amazing beaches. A special place for nature lovers and foodies

A beautiful house with Pyrenean views, generous hosts and wonderful hiking, biking and skiing nearby. A rare pearl

For retreats, groups of friends, and big families: come to recharge the senses at this special and ancient house enveloped by wild gardens

A large and light house sitting by itself in lovely countryside with a big pool, maturing gardens and superb views up to Saignon on the hill