Elegance and ease mark this gentle group of Loire-Valley buildings, with soft-textured interiors and the owners’ fine hospitality and food

A striking, newly thatched and revamped pub with spoiling bedrooms, an inviting bar and menus overseen by Raymond Blanc - you'll eat well

Kate makes you feel at home the moment you enter her great big beloved house - full of books, guitars and a piano, antiques and huge spaces

A truly delightful place to eat and stay with gorgeous bedrooms and good food, in a village with Tudor houses and ancient church towers

A very tastefully restored old stone stable on a gloriously rural estate with woodland gardens, lake and a deer park

Stylish B&B rooms in a peaceful little château, amongst rolling hills, woods and farmland - bikes and boules to borrow, lovely pool to share

A stunning setting for this B&B - the village a thousand feet below you and views to both snow-capped Alps and Provence lavender fields

The South West Coast Path passes by this waterfront pub on the Teign estuary. Come for fresh bedrooms, classic dishes and excellent walking

An old-world inn full of colour, with open fires, cosy rooms, local food and the magnificent Northumberland National Park all around

Blissful views to vineyards and mountains from this faithful reproduction of a 16th-century manor. Eat well, hike, bike, sauna and swim

A little gem tucked on a rural Northumbrian estate with other cottages. The rugged coast and lovely Alnwick make for super day trips

Near Mont St Michel, an 18th-century 'maison de plaisance' in historic grounds run by a charming family. Don't miss the table d'hôte!

Treat yourselves to some downtime at this lush, semi-tropical hideaway with big pool, delicious breakfasts and charmingly rustic bedrooms

Come for super ridgeway walks and explore charming towns and villages from this pretty 18th-century cottage in the Chalke Valley

A sleek, light-filled, beautifully designed, minimalist space for 4 with wrap-around views from the living room and pool

A lovely restored house on a farm beside a cluster of ancient buildings surrounded by lush forest and grasslands, a deeply rurarl spot

In the beautiful Somerset hamlet of St Catherine, a cosy wooden cabin surrounded by fields and woods. Wonderful walks from the front door...

An old sporting lodge in Argyll renovated with sensitivity – fish in the river, gaze at the night skies, climb Ben Udlaidh