Your host runs home and B&B with effortless efficiency and you'll find shiny, spotless rooms to retreat to after a day's exploring

Swing off the main road through the village, up into the hills along a narrow track and through a gate, observed by curious sheep

A warm, gracious townhouse in a small town, run by delightful new hosts. Explore chateaux, canoe on the Loire... cycle to Angers!

Atmospheric English pub with rooms by the green with its duck ponds in a pretty village, with walking and cycling routes to join

You're overlooking the main square in medieval Umbertide from this cosy, second-floor apartment, so you'll feel very much like a local

Foodies will love the irresistible cooking - along with local wine and a typically Tuscan setting. Bedrooms are pretty

Close to sandy beaches between Penzance and Helston, three places to stay with characterful interiors and freshly baked scones waiting

Independent B&B in an ancient hamlet with modern interiors, immaculate bedrooms and a pleasant wooden terrace for sunny days

A welcoming, warming inn for locals and visitors alike with a blazing log fire, excellent local and seasonal food and proper Devon ales

Take a suite with champagne, strawberries and a tower, swim in the saltwater pool, eat a Castilian cocido - unwind in rural peace!

Enjoy southern life in a charming palazzo in Trapani. Come for coastal drives and baroque basilica, hand-twirled pasta and fresh calamari

A lovely spot in an AONB for this bright and airy converted barn, one of four round a gravelled courtyard on a 600-acre estate

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

Eight miles from York, near Moors and coast, this smart historic home is just the ticket for families and small groups of friends

Remote off-grid cottage 1400 feet above sea level in Northumberland National Park, with incredible night skies

An airy Estate Manager's House set in pretty grounds with a pool, orchard, barbecue and private terrace for long lazy days in the sun

In wine country, a beautifully revived 16th-century manor and hospitable B&B. Visit Angers’ cathedral, cruise along the Loire to Saumur

Crackling fires in winter, croquet in the summer. Life ticks by peacefully - rooms are engagingly old-fashioned, the garden is much-loved