Gorgeously restored villas with breathtaking views. Chill out on the terrace, sample the owner’s homemade wine, and the wood-fired pizza!

Wonky floors and handmade beds in a restored coaching inn for 4, 6 or 8 - sociable evenings round the farmhouse table, walks from the door

A cosy, very comfortable stone cottage with fine views across the valley, just a couple of miles from the southern tip of Ullswater

An 18th-century townhouse restored with flair by former restauranteurs: come for colour, comfort and sublime dining

A charming comfy cottage with wood burner, delicious hilly views, walks radiating from the door. We didn’t want to leave!

A 17th-Century Irish castle on the water’s edge. Watch the yachts from your bedroom, join local wine nights, discover the rich history

Come to walk, cycle, fish and hunker down in style in front of the wood-burner - sleep in deep comfort in a lovingly converted barn

In the middle of the National Park and surrounded by the Coquet Hills, come for dark skies, fabulous walking and a very comfortable cottage

A handsome Grade II listed pub with rooms in the heart of one of England's best foodie towns

Ease through a beautiful wrought iron gate to a courtyard and an elegant 1700s creamy stone holiday house, part of the château estate

Wooded, lakeside retreat for 1 or 2 – big windows, huge terrace, wood-burner, wide screen. The Jurassic coast a cross-country walk away

Fall in love with this riverside village, lost in a valley in lower Normandy, and this sunny house for couples or families

Chocolate-box cottages in deepest Normandy, owned by bright young things with a passion for organic cuisine and the good life

Kate makes you feel at home the moment you enter her great big beloved house - full of books, guitars and a piano, antiques and huge spaces

A dog-friendly cottage in a tranquil village, formerly the bakery, now restored to perfection with oodles of space and much comfort

A quirky, colourful house with views to the Aveyron river, green forests and stunning cliffs across the valley. A short stroll into town

A lodge house in magnificent gardens, which are all yours when visitors leave. A sweet retreat for anyone, but gardeners will adore it

An 18th-century stone cottage sitting in the glorious Yorkshire Dales. Nature-lovers and walkers will be well pleased and so will their dog