A small, quirky country house hotel with lovely staff, pretty rooms and heavenly food served in a pillared dining room

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

Come for the utter silence and the rare beauty of this far north-westerly landscape, teeming with wildlife. An antidote to city life

A medieval monastery, stunningly revived, in untouristy, car-free Pisciotta. Sip greco on the terrace; scramble through olives to the sea

Friendly inn close to Glastonbury. Locals come for breakfast, there's a lively bar and excellent bedrooms, some with a bath in the room

A unique 1900 house and garden on the edge of Lyon, steeped in history and authenticity – a beautiful home with museum-quality objects

Gaze over to glorious Curemonte from the pretty cottage, loll by the pool, play games in the barn. Bring friends and book the main house too

Heaps to do on-site: organic farm shop & café, cookery & cheese-making courses, farm tours. A brilliant base for exploring the Cotswolds too

Cosied up by the fire in your farmhouse high on the moor you’ll feel miles from civilisation, while Chatsworth is just minutes away

Gaze on Umbrian hills as the children play, watch the fireflies dance at night. Dine fabulously in Gubbio - or here. Sociable-family bliss

Tucked at the bottom of a long track and surrounded by a gorgeous natural landscape, is this generous end-slice of a 17th-century stone farm

In peaceful walled gardens, this former convent is a quiet retreat just a stone’s throw from the Riviera coast and the best of Tuscany

On a farmstead near Ronda where views stretch for miles are 2 houses, one old, one new, brilliant for families, sharing a fabulous pool

A treat in any season, a place to stir your soul, yield to nature and learn how to play again - with a pretty fine roost to come home to

A stone building designed by Sir John Soane in the stable yard of this historic and beautiful estate with deer park and woodland gardens

A serene retreat, deep in forested hills with lovely gardens, the river rushing through and a very comfortable, calming and spacious house

Up a narrow lane this dreamy pub with rooms has views to the South Downs. Stay for supper, let the kids run free in the garden playground