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

Friendly touches everywhere, terrific food and drink, smart bedrooms above the sparkling bar – dogs and children welcome

A scrupulously renovated dog-friendly gate lodge with garden and outdoor dining area, a five-minute drive from Mount Congreve Gardens

A niftily restored, open-plan, beamed hayloft, just the ticket for romantics, with gorgeous views of fields and open countryside

A lovely, rambling old house for family gatherings with an extra cottage for bigger groups, a gorgeous garden and hilltop villages nearby

An attractive, sympathetic barn conversion, full of light, pleasingly uncluttered and hidden down a lane in stunningly beautiful countryside

Rare as a bird, a proper old fashioned French inn on the side of the road in a sleepy village, a restoration project for the new owners

A lovely gîte, once a hunting lodge, with two private terraces overlooking the manicured gardens of an 1830s manor house

Elegant 19th-century château deep in the Dordogne forest promises seclusion, serenity and an unhurried, sun-soaked escape.

Comfortable apartment steeped in Breton history, in a beautifully renovated gabarier’s house overlooking the marine estuary

Like staying in a family home, only with Henri III furniture and rolling green views. Energetic hosts cook, farm, hunt, chat over champagne

This fine old inn stands in blissful peace, a field or two back from the coastal path, with cosy rooms, delicious food and a rustic style

A delightful mix of old and new in a conservation village with a four-acre garden that attracts all the local birds. Guests love it here

Ensconce yourselves in the Black Périgord and stay in the East Wing of a 16th-century castle with private garden and surrounding parkland

Explore Le Marche, Italy's hidden gem, from this tranquil agriturismo tucked among olive groves and fields above the Adriatic coast

A charming 17th-century cottage in a quaint village with views and the owners' pub, farm shop, Wellness Barn and brewery just a short walk

A rare treat, 700 metres above sea level and girdled by forests, waterfalls, chestnuts and olives, this is the place to come for solace

Up at the top of Scotland’s west coast, a small, stylish and welcoming hotel with lovely owners and some nicely priced rooms