Heart-soaring Pyrenean views, animals roaming, natural materials in simple rural rooms, organic food: it’s a superbly welcoming eco-lodge

An 18th-century listed cottage in a pretty terrace with a private courtyard garden and pond, just a short walk from the high street

A relaxed hilltop escape with good food, a pretty garden and fine views of the Dales and the river Wharfe – bring your dog too

An elegant medieval manor in the Loire with spiral stone staircases, mullioned windows, jaunty turrets and a fairytale suite just for you

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

The Dordogne flows through the gastronomic heart of France, where stunning villages cling to rock faces and historic riches are in store

An artist's house imbued with an understated elegance. Stay for dinner; be charmed by the garden where fruit trees throng, hens loiter

Feel at ease in a lovely old townhouse filled with pictures and personality and including a separate loft apartment

Cosy 17th-century cottage in a village inland from Wells-next-the-Sea and with easy access to north Norfolk's main attractions

This grand house on the river Derwent oozes old-fashioned comfort – find traditional bedrooms, delicious food and an open fire

Chichester, blessed with a stunning natural setting, is great for a city break - and this Georgian coach house the perfect bolthole for 2

A delightful eyrie surrounded by water, forest, wildflowers in spring and summer, views to distant islands - just a short stroll to Ullapool

A luxurious springboard for the wineries, villages and treasures of south Tuscany in the magical Orcia valley - if you can bear to leave it!

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

A luxurious eco-retreat plus extra room in the Space Conker in private woodland with views to the Chaîne des Aravis and Mont Blanc

Friendly inn in the middle of Sedbergh. Lots of bedrooms to choose from, suntrap picnic area, walks in the Yorkshire Dales on the doorstep

Unwind in a beautiful old mill house on the banks of the Célé river, surrounded by high limestone cliffs for outstanding walks and wildlife

Two family-friendly gites (big groups can take both) with beautiful gardens, sparkling pool, activities for children and peace for parents