Stylish interiors, beautiful rooms, lovely staff and wonderful food – all this in the Forest of Dean with great walking and cycling trails

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

Warm, interesting hosts and a fascinating celebration of 20th-century style. Gleaming en suites, original Art Deco furniture, WWII books...

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

Ideal for families: pool, tennis and golf at the hotel with beach and yachting nearby. Comfortable bedrooms and a terrace for outdoor dining

An adorable little 1800s cottage with a garden – simple, unpretentious and filled with the owner's colourful art on walls and lampshades

Spend restful days in a verdant garden, slip into the cooling pool, sip wine on your private balcony, stroll into arty Benissa

With breathtaking views of the hills above Nice, a splendid villa with big bedrooms, shimmering infinity pool, and generous, fun owners

Cosy cottage on a working farm just ten miles from Edinburgh with spectacular views, walks from the door and a wood-fired sauna

Sit back and relax at this luxuriously elegant grand manor in the heart of the Dordogne with a concierge service to take care of everything

A period manor and pretty rooms in old stables: a quiet base for Pas-de-Calais and Picardie. Madame loves the house, animals, story-telling

An important spot for this grand 19th-century château on the banks of the Loire, steeped in history and with kind, erudite owners

Magnificent house with old-fashioned charm and gardens leading down to the Beaulieu River – take the footpath to Beaulieu or Bucklers Hard

A stately retreat, an oasis of calm and beauty. Picnic on the lawns, enjoy a glass of home-produced prosecco beneath a centuries-old tree

Lovely stone-built dog-friendly cottages with a pool in glorious, quiet surroundings near to lakes, mountains and wide sandy beaches

Fringing Tuscany countryside and fun Montone, an authentic Umbrian mansion with Slow Food, lavender fields, apartments and pool. Pure Italy

Rambling casitas in a mountain hamlet, with a rustic bar, big shared pool and golf course, surrounded by birds, bougainvillea and views

Technically in Florence yet immersed in the Tuscan hills: easy comfort, country character, warm wonderful hosts, heavenly views