Off the beaten track and into the hills – this remote, unknown bird-filled region is faultless for outdoorsy people

A rare treat, 700 metres above sea level and girdled by forests, waterfalls, chestnuts and olives, this is the place to come for solace

A hilltop setting for this ancient fortress with an illustrious past. You stay in apartments or farmhouses inside or outside the walls

A marvellous spot overlooking Rutland Water for this 1760 former hunting lodge with good seasonal British food and very comfortable bedrooms

Pippa tells you where to find wild flowers, babbling brooks and butterflies... and hike, bike and swim. Magic for families

A pretty cottage by the sea, with uplifting views, restful bedrooms, the beach a short hop, gorgeous walks and lively Kinsale nearby

The cottage looks down over Lough Swilly, idyllic for boats and safe swims... and the neighbours are friendly, just sheep and cows

Come for super ridgeway walks and explore charming towns and villages from this pretty 18th-century cottage in the Chalke Valley

Vineyard B&B suites in sympathetically restored barn. Your own entrance, light-filled rooms, terraces for sunny breakfasts & evening tipples

In an outstanding area for lovers of food and wine, here are 3 beautiful boltholes in the Alto Douro, the oldest wine region in the world

The inn is the hub of this thriving village in 'the blue remembered hills' with great food and super rooms - a Sawday's Community Champion

An 1820s beach house just 50 metres from the pretty sands and a first-floor deck for al fresco meals with stunning views over the water

Live like a local. Art lovers, book lovers and walkers will be happy here above an art gallery in the centre of town

Lodge and gardens – superbly designed, immaculate, fresh, eco friendly – rest in unspoilt Picardy. Anglo-French hosts take turns to cook

Cosy and comfortable eco cottages near to sleepy Sidmouth, where grown-ups can relax and children can play safely in the gardens

Heart-soaring Pyrenean views, animals roaming, natural materials in simple rural rooms, organic food: it’s a superbly welcoming eco-lodge

A Victorian house on a 5000 acre estate, snazzily renovated and tucked down a track with a private lake, in the quieter part of Cumbria

In a hamlet in the Loire countryside is a friendly estate with a family-sized gite, a shared saltwater pool and heaps of old-world charm