A smart launch pad for visiting all things Champagne-related and Reims with its enchanting cathedral. All is cosy, luxurious...

Gaze on Umbrian hills as the children play, watch the fireflies dance at night. Dine fabulously in Gubbio - or here. Sociable-family bliss

A private villa beautifully flanked by gardens bursting with fruit. Here you'll find real Spanish character, style and a sun-trap terrace

In the city of Trapani, at the foot of Mount Erice, a nobleman's villa with a warm heart and exotic gardens. A hop from the Egadi Islands

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

Take breakfast on the terrace, splash in the fabulous pool. A secluded, friendly, immaculate villa close to golf and surfing beaches

The living is easy here: laze in the subtropical garden, float in the saltwater pool, let the kids play and meet other guests over dinner

Come to be cosseted in this gloriously peaceful retreat among beautiful gardens with much old-fashioned charm and excellent food

A swishly renovated detached hideaway up a hill, surrounded by vineyards and with a covered deck for sweeping views just outside Beaune

A true gem - sleep in a small hillside castle, share delicious communal meals, walk or cycle to the beautiful waterfalls nearby

Return to warming fires after hiking in Ireland's highest mountains. Two traditional cottages on the outskirts of pretty Killorglin

An exquisitely restored 1850s townhouse, steeped in history, with a sweet garden and within walking distance of the historic centre of Porto

An old farm worker's cottage, niftily done up and nicely remote, with walking and fishing on the doorstep, four miles from Hadrian's Wall

Cosy apartment for two in a cluster of farm buildings near Hawkshead, surrounded by countryside and with a good pub a stroll away

A traditional cottage in Polruan on the Fowey estuary with harbour and cove views and a tea shop and two pubs in the village

A pretty cottage in the grounds of an 18th-century house in the heart of southern Burgundy, with stunning gardens and a shared pool

An impressive limestone house on three levels created within the ruins of an ancient village with uninterrupted views of the Vézère valley

A bright and beautiful six-bedroom house with lovely mature gardens in the glorious Lake District: bring your entire tribe plus the dog