High-up, simple apartments, pools with fabulous views; kids play-things and donkeys, the glittering coast, Rapallo and Portofino down below

A 18th-century house with pool in a small town with friendly owners and a tropical garden of banana, fig and, of course, frangipani

A lovely old stone cottage in a group round a pretty courtyard, with your own private patio and seating area, on the Pink Granite Coast

Come for a quintessentially English country cottage tucked down a village path with wisteria in the garden and a short walk to a foodie pub

An enchanting Belle Epoque villa with a terraced garden and superb views across palm trees and vines to Mont Saint-Michel

A 200-year-old cortijo in a totally tranquil spot with gated pool, two acres of grounds, an orchard and olive terraces with mountain views

Loved by estate-workers, visitors, well-heeled locals, and walkers, this spruced-up pub is a friendly launchpad for Chatsworth

Château apartments with a heated pool, parkland and a menagerie - Gold Beach and the British Normandy Memorial are on the doorstep

A hilltop setting for this ancient fortress with an illustrious past. You stay in apartments or farmhouses inside or outside the walls

You're only a whisper away from history in this family-run château, where rose gardens, sumptuous bedrooms and generous breakfasts wait

A three storey house and garden with sea glimpses in the 'vieux village' named for the Mimosa trees which flower in profusion in winter

Fresh sea air, drowsy afternoons and nights of warmth and company against the backdrop of the sea in this big old house on Lyme Bay

Tour the cellars or wander the history-rich château and grounds. A truly pretty place

A rustic-chic bolthole with bird's eye views to gaze at from your bedroom and the beautiful garden, tucked in a quaint hamlet in Maremma

A cottage for two on a wonderfully eco wine school and vineyard. Gaze at magnificent views from your terrace

A pair of historic houses with far-reaching views of the Cotswold Hills and walks from the gate

Vibrant, artistic barn conversion in the heart of York, a five-minute walk from the Minster. Convivial place with helpful, friendly hosts

Lovely slice of the Mediterranean with splendid rooms in deepest Cheshire. Sip an aperitif on the sunny terrace