Simple rooms on a spotless farm, delightful hosts, delicious fruit tarts at breakfast on Sundays. The perfect stopover en route to Calais

An 18th-century fisherman's cottage with garden at the end of a cobbled row, for happy seaside holidays with superb beaches nearby

Unwind in a beautiful old mill house on the banks of the Célé river, surrounded by high limestone cliffs for outstanding walks and wildlife

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

A very grand façade for this handsome Charente village house with a beautiful, peaceful garden, creamy stone walls and olive trees

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

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

A romantic little bolthole with a hot tub on the Penicuik Estate with well-thought-out interiors and dreamy views over pastures and woodland

Fabulous bakes and hot waffles at breakfast, green fields all around and Normandy steeped in history. Great for foodies and historians

Wildflower beds, 1,350 acres to roam, and all of Norfolk to discover. Then it’s back to 4 chic boltholes with pool, steam room and jacuzzi

A light larch-clad space for lovers, or a retreat for walkers and writers in pretty Orford, once a medieval sea port but now on the river

Come here in the summer (it’s closed Nov-April except by arrangement) for candlelit dining, chintzy bedrooms, long views over the park...

A gorgeously tranquil place to escape to and fall in love with the Périgord's medieval villages, valleys, wines, markets and artisan farms

Glorious airy living space in this superbly restored barn, a terrace with long views and a pool across the garden - bikes to borrow too

Your hosts couldn’t be nicer and look after you beautifully – this is a lovely, homely place with a rambling garden

Converted stables in the grounds of a manor house in a peaceful village just outside Banbury with lovely walking in the Cherwell Valley

A lovely wisteria-clad inn in a traditional Cotswold village with grand walks, a pretty garden, tasty food and thoughtful bedrooms

A light and bright 1900s holiday home for family holidays by the sea, with a large enclosed garden and a short hop to beach and shops