An elegant house with ancient roots and a shimmering pool – explore the Charente countryside, drive to lovely Angoulême

Minutes from old Ajaccio (a scenic cycle ride) is a charming small hotel with a stunning bay setting, and majestic mountains behind

Good restaurants, beach walks, a grand welcome for dogs: that’s Whitstable. Bring friends and stay in this smart house close to it all

A converted coach house and stables, now one long cottage with much space, a country house feel and your own walled garden

Enter through an impressive stone arch to discover this 16th-century fortified manor house with a gorgeous communal dining and seating area

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

A swishly renovated detached hideaway up a hill, surrounded by vineyards and with a covered deck for sweeping views just outside Beaune

A lovely 1910 village house, deep in sleepy countryside, with delightful owners, delicious home cooking and a pretty garden for lazy days

A sturdy, spacious house with stunning views over the garden and ocean, originally built in the 1800s as one of a row of Coastguard cottages

A deliciously cool loft hideaway set among tall sycamores in the grounds of the main house, with a New York Tribeca feel and much comfort

Style abounds in this exquisite Côte d'Azur family getaway, where lazy days are whiled away by the pool and in the quiet bird-filled gardens

Fresh, inviting bedrooms with leafy garden views and a pretty church next door. Moffat's spectacular Grey Mare's Tail waterfall nearby

Elegant rooms behind a popular village pub with country walks from the door, and the spectacular Peak District and stately homes nearby

Elegant historic house set in acres of grounds transports you to a bygone belle époque (with all mod cons)

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

This 300-year-old Cotswold pub, the hub of picture-book Sapperton from which there are glorious walks, is a superb place to eat and stay

Perched in gorgeous gardens and with stunning views, this 18th-century presbytery has lovely rooms and an excellent gourmet restaurant

Modest and authentic, a top-floor apartment in an eco-friendly Provençal farmhouse, with dogs and hens. River swims are a stroll away...