An elegant 1892 building, once the village school, now a very comfortable, colourful B&B with warm owners and delicious breakfasts

Rural peace just an hour from London in your own gorgeous converted hay barn, ten minutes from Alton

Boutique hotel next to Funchal’s 15th-century cathedral, with a champagne and lobster bar, rooftop cocktail bar and an excellent restaurant

It's not often you get an entire hamlet to yourselves but here it is – 10 traditional stone houses with big communal spaces in rural bliss

A charming comfy cottage with wood burner, delicious hilly views, walks radiating from the door. We didn’t want to leave!

An L-shaped former farmhouse is now a gorgeous place to stay, just half an hour from the sea or the mountains and near interesting villages

Anglo-Irish meets Italian and Indian; the owners have peppered this charming home with furniture and artefacts from their broad travels

Romantics will love this small converted hut-on-a-hillside surrounded by pines and olives with stunning views over the old town and the sea

Birdwatchers and artists delight: acres of peaceful land, close to some of Cornwall’s finest galleries – and the sea

There's a pared-back unforced elegance to this stone barn sitting quietly in its own grounds beside a cobbled courtyard awash with roses

20 minutes’ walk from Gordes and a hop from Aix, find grownup peace and minimalism for lovers of modern style and timeless Provence

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

Furniture from home-grown wood, reclaimed tiles - beautiful. The Jurassic Coast is near, Bridport's antiques, too. Cycle, walk, spot birds

A rustic and elegant farmhouse retreat in Provence with a pool, vineyards and wildlife-filled pond – a launchpad for the Luberon

A beautiful walled historical country house, surrounded by acres of farmland and citrus groves, with wine tastings and kind, charming owners

High in the Tuscan hills, at the end of an avenue of cypresses, surrounded by parkland and acres of olives... a 13th-century dream

Thoughtful red brick barn conversion on a working farm. Peaceful, practical and within easy reach of outdoor activities

Great gulps of ozone will engulf you at this architect-designed 1960s beach house - light, bright and sparkling, just like the ocean