Breakfast on homemade ricotta, bask on a cool white lounger, swim in the cove below. We love this young, friendly, rustic B&B

A beautifully-restored Devon bank barn at the end of a quiet lane in the glorious South Hams, just right for a couple or small family

A 15th-century courtyard hides a petite contemporary apartment – a fabulous base from which to explore the city and all its treasures

A charming hotel in a quiet neighbourhood in medieval Bologna, just the ticket for a city escape filled with food, history and culture

A beautiful old farmhouse, carefully renovated with great authenticity and charm, surrounded by other farm buildings and a walled garden

Come for the glorious Peak District and this rural independent pub, with roots in the 12th century, serene bedrooms and toothsome food

An enchanting hideaway with sensational views in a flowery English semi-wild country garden, near Sissinghurst and Great Dixter

An 18th-century limestone barn, now a quiet hideaway for a group of friends or family in a very rural spot surrounded by fields and woods

Wine lovers adore this impeccably furnished château; lovely Anne meets and greets, Jean Christophe makes wine and takes charge of tastings

An 1820s farmhouse at the end of a quiet road in the North York Moors National Park, overlooking a forest and surrounded by fields

Rural French heaven at this lovely farm within four hectares. Natural materials, neutral colours and a lavender-lined pool all to yourselves

A light, bright Georgian townhouse in a residential street directly opposite the lovely Lido and restaurant, near Clifton Village

Choose one of six uncluttered, beautiful spaces within this elegant Georgian coach house on the Denton estate, for restorative country stays

An elegant Burgundian townhouse with pool on the fringe of Morvan National Park in Côte d'Or. Dijon, with Beaune and Chablis an easy drive

Come for the utter silence and the rare beauty of this far north-westerly landscape, teeming with wildlife. An antidote to city life

A charming renovated stone gîte only 15km from Bergerac with a large outdoor pool, pretty gardens and walks and cycle rides from the door

A super old place for those who love history and Thomas Hardy. Come for enjoyable gastropub food and comfortable, traditional bedrooms

This friendly, Scottish island B&B has the Atlantic at the end of the garden and air so clean the lichen grows like beards from the trees