An Edwardian villa with stunning views, polished floors, cosy fires and child-friendly garden a short walk from lovely Portmeirion

Feel right at home in a thatched farmhouse on South Pool Creek, with cottage garden views, great breakfasts and a good local pub

A glamourous escape in central Nice. Creative art-filled interiors, a fabulous tropical garden, sumptuous buffet breakfasts, pool and spa

A beautifully-restored Devon bank barn at the end of a quiet lane in the glorious South Hams, just right for a couple or small family

Beautifully designed timber cabins in the Black Mountains, right next to a lovely old inn serving good, honest food from their own farm

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

A welcoming inn with rooms on the edge of a small village. Stay in a converted barn in the pretty garden, eat delicious country fare

Peaceful Highland hideaway on a wooded lochside: spy dolphins and otters, stargaze, and soak up the deep silence

Your host runs home and B&B with effortless efficiency and you'll find shiny, spotless rooms to retreat to after a day's exploring

An old sporting lodge in Argyll renovated with sensitivity – fish in the river, gaze at the night skies, climb Ben Udlaidh

An authentic, charming and spacious home with garden, pool and lake, deep in the Dordogne valley and decorated with uncluttered elegance

Traditional and modern, verging on the opulent. Find a stone-flagged tap room for walkers, top modern food and Chatsworth-perfect bedrooms

A vine-clad stone house hideaway for lovers, walkers, artists and hermits with a sweet veranda overlooking woodland down to the river

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

Gloriously green rural self-catering apartments with pool and lovely, friendly owners

Countryside and seaside all in one go – what could be more inspiring? Lovely Louisa lives down the road, on hand if you need her

A sculptor's studio, flooded with light, converted into a restful holiday home surrounded by glorious countryside, near Totnes