Come for sumptuous bedrooms, fine dining, colourful gardens and charming staff at this smart hotel and restaurant

Traditional family-run hotel with sitting rooms galore, award-winning food and Snowdon views. High teas and games room for children too

A very swish 1610 house, thoroughly refurbished, in the heart of old Chichester with oodles of space and a surprisingly large garden

A glorious retreat for nature lovers with a natural swimming pool, bikes to borrow and the timeless soundtrack of the water surrounding you

Charming cottage in a vast garden with a swimming pool and boule; walk to the nearest village, drive to Côte d'Azur in less than an hour

At the foot of the Cambrian Mountains, an ancient whitewashed cottage with cosy, light-flooded interiors – a perfect rural bolthole for two

In an outstanding area for lovers of food and wine, here are 3 beautiful boltholes in the Alto Douro, the oldest wine region in the world

A beautifully restored old coaching inn with a vibrant, bustling atmosphere, great food, friendly staff and super-swish bedrooms

An old farm worker's cottage, niftily done up and nicely remote, with walking and fishing on the doorstep, four miles from Hadrian's Wall

In the heart of arts and craft town Chipping Campden, a beautifully decorated 17th-century house with a celebrated restaurant downstairs

Wander down a pebble path to this large, light holiday home near La Rochelle. Eco-friendly, accessible to all, and perfectly peaceful

A grand piano to play and a delicious bed to sink into, at this cool, arty bolthole near Frome. For those who love spaciousness and peace

A fine old stone mill, the river rushing by, kingfishers, kayaking, swimming: it’s a dream place with Provence and the Cévennes at the door

Unwind in glorious Northumberland with beaches, proper dunes, ancient castles and two cosy cottages with open fires, sea views and gardens

Climb Snowdon - or take the train. Swim, cycle, visit Nat Trust houses. A deliciously quirky retreat for 2 (and babe-in-arms) near Anglesey

An 18th-century cottage for four on a working sheep farm: walk the Pentland Hills, get the bus to Edinburgh for culture

A very pretty Victorian gothic house of limestone and brick, sitting peacefully on the edge of the village, eight miles from foodie Ludlow

A fortified castle in parkland, built mostly in the 1300s on the Montbazens plateau, near to the stunning Averyon gorges