A pretty stone single-storey house, now renovated beautifully into a comfortable hideaway with wonderful views to woodland and river

You're overlooking the main square in medieval Umbertide from this cosy, second-floor apartment, so you'll feel very much like a local

Walkers and wild-lifers, here is your place in the Pyrenees. Colour, character, a welcoming family, log fires and delicious home cooking

A thatched farmhouse only just over the channel near Rouen that’s well hidden in lush gardens, but worth finding for the gourmet food alone

Stylish bedrooms, scrumptious fish menu. Fill your boots (and pack your wellies) at this village gem in Derbyshire's lovely crown

A striking 200-year-old coaching inn in a sleepy village with a classic, traditional pub feel, superb food and wines, pretty bedrooms

An incredible living museum, dedicated to the history of Sicily and the arts. Stay in the main house or in a cottage in the fecund garden

Hilltop château on the edge of a small village half an hour from Saint-Émilion, with a lovely garden, a swimming pool and two lakes

A smartly renovated 250-year-old brick and flint built inn, tucked away in a sleepy village beneath the glorious South Downs

Hike the Wild Boar Fells, get cosy at home with books, games and DVDs, and meet the farm’s hens, cows and sheep

A peaceful grown-up place circled by meadows and woodland with helpful owners next door – a superb spot to explore the south-west

Peaceful small hotel in a hiker's paradise a short walk from Cómpeta-Malaga with winter sunshine and endless views over mountains and sea

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

A family retreat high above the river Dordogne and deep in woodland - with heated pool, games room and village restaurants a stroll away

High above Lisbon, this small but elegant former palace offers stunning views, stylishly rustic rooms and a dreamy, sun-trap patio

A light and bright converted milking parlour in a rural idyll with a barbecue hut, a spa overlooked by horses and a shared hot tub