A bit like staying with friends in a smart country house, but not having to help - an elegant refuge near Bradford-on-Avon

Your own cosy apartment in the once arty, now classy Latin Quarter. An elegant, romantic and peaceful bolthole for 2

A peaceful retreat in an unspoilt woody corner of Sussex. Bring dogs and children for fabulous walking on the South Downs Way

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

A view-filled waterside retreat surrounded by ten acres of meadow and trees, with a cosy firepit for starry nights

Old beams and rich history: a dramatic setting for fireside chats, superb breakfasts (home-reared, baked, grown) - and Midsomer Murders

Comfortable, big family home with sparkling sea views over the Adriatic: discover the coast, explore Ancona and Loreto, enjoy the garden

A pool, pines, and hosts that give you figs from their garden! Stroll to a pizzeria through the olive groves, return to 2 lovely apartments

A seamless blend of ancient and modern in this architect-designed villa with infinity pool and veranda for admiring the wonderful views

Stylish hotel with big rooms, lovely food and a pretty garden overlooking the old castle moat - don’t miss the Mappa Mundi in the cathedral

High in Ávila's unspoilt nature is this stylish, eco-brilliant family hotel: mountains, massages, pool, organic dinners... a special escape

A calm, leafy bolthole in one of Paris' most elegant districts. Step out to stylish boutiques, good bakeries – and the Eiffel Tower

Such lovely views from this light-filled flat, built in the 19th century – curl up with a book and gaze out to sea

A romantic creekside cottage down a web of narrow lanes in a tumbling green valley – mess about on the water to your heart’s content

A stunner of a setting for this restored croft house with long views to a sparkling loch and a lively village nearby. Good beaches too

An upmarket, very comfortable old stone village house with tasty breakfasts and a sunny courtyard full of colourful flowers

Loved by estate-workers, visitors, well-heeled locals, and walkers, this spruced-up pub is a friendly launchpad for Chatsworth

A hop to Montpellier, but deep in the countryside: a romantic pad, with Moroccan rugs, ochre-limed walls and bikes to ride into the country