Between mountains and coast: come for peace and serenity at this small hotel framed by fragrant gardens and the mighty Sierra Nevada peaks

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

A recently renovated and very comfortable stand-alone limestone cottage with fabulous views on the edge of the Easton Walled Gardens

An elegant house with ancient roots and a shimmering pool – explore the Charente countryside, drive to lovely Angoulême

Escape to the edge of the Atlantic. Find airy rooms and good food served from terraces overlooking the ocean - all with a green conscience

A welcoming retreat with lofty rooms, a sunny garden and the perfect plunge pool. Come for slow days and wine country adventures

Like staying in a family home, only with Henri III furniture and rolling green views. Energetic hosts cook, farm, hunt, chat over champagne

Friendly Maki and Clive's higgledy-piggledy home is a charming, special place. Rooms are cosy, Clive's cookery courses are fun and delicious

A very pretty old coach house in a south London garden – perfect for a couple or a family. Friendly owners live across the courtyard

A comfy cottage for two in the quiet, leafy outskirts of Aix with easy access to the city and a kind, attentive owner nearby

Remote barn in the middle of Northumberland National Park with views for miles, wonderful walking trails and clear starry skies

Rooms in the house overlook the vineyard, the lodges are surrounded by it - check out the vines, then drink their wine with a good dinner

A truly special barn conversion, flooded with light and with its own decked outdoor space surrounded by bucolic countryside

Great for comfort, beauty, character and home baking. Borrow vintage bikes to explore Cambridge: Christine knows it inside out

A truly cosy cottage in a superb setting for happy holidays, with dogs welcome, beaches nearby and wonderful walking all around

An expansive and generous 13th-century Catalan farmhouse, restored with verve and colour in the Pyrenees - a wonderful spot for groups

A very peaceful, family-run hotel on the shores of Lake Garda with rose and jasmine-scented gardens for summer dinners by candlelight