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 harmonious B&B in Chinon wine country. Home-cooked food, comfortable beds, easy conservations with your host and starry skies at night

An airy, well-designed hideaway for two in an ancient barn on a quiet farm. This is prime walking country with Hadrian’s Wall nearby.

Come for the gloriously peaceful countryside and this 1700s house and garden, scrupulously renovated and with plenty of space

A nicely priced inn on Shaftesbury's high street with a warm contemporary style and some excellent food – fine local walking waits

Come for the great outdoors and wrap-around views of Muncaster Fell and Scafell Pike from this warm, bright and spacious Passivhaus

Spacious rooms and a cosy apartment a stone’s throw from Avignon’s historic sights. Retire to the heated pool after a busy day sightseeing

A truly authentic place to stay on a Sicilian working farm with roaming hens, wheat fields, wild flowers and a distant view of the sea

Once a lofty edifice for music recitals, now an original place to stay - with stained-glass windows, a bed on a stage and wild gardens

Independence at one end of the house with your own sitting room opening onto a courtyard garden. Good pub for food a few minutes' walk away

With incredible views across to distant hilltop towns, olive groves and buzzing bees, this elegant farmhouse has bags of charm

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

From the delicious scented garden with its limestone pool to the cool rooms with perfect linen, this is a place for a special occasion

Provençale-meets-English country house to great effect – cycle Mont Ventoux, walk to the monastery, visit Roman towns and vineyards

Created around a Georgian house, with lake, woodland and fields, this hotel and members' club offers great food, fresh air and much comfort

A craft brewery in Italy? What a wonderful surprise! Three explorer-themed rooms, a brewpub, pizzeria, pool, cookery classes and events

Superb, all-organic agriturismo built of straw bales and offering wonderful home-grown natural food, a delightful family, great walking

Gloriously cool in summer, cosy in winter, a 365-day-a-year retreat. Just a 10-minute promenade along the beach into the fun heart of town