High-up, simple apartments, pools with fabulous views; kids play-things and donkeys, the glittering coast, Rapallo and Portofino down below

Family-run B&B in traditional trulli with hands-on hosts. Swim in the pool, explore the countryside, the coast is half an hour’s drive away

Welcome to an immaculate and historic retreat with private gardens, ten minutes from the Finistère coast (and oysters!)

Boutique hotel next to Funchal’s 15th-century cathedral, with a champagne and lobster bar, rooftop cocktail bar and an excellent restaurant

An elegant manor house with pretty bedrooms, pool and large grounds. Nathalie looks after you with ease and sets you up with big breakfasts

Bags of character within and without at this four-storey village house with rooftop views over the mountains, next to a 12th-century church

Brilliant hosts and a traditional country pub feel with warming fires, delicious food and fabulous bedrooms at this standout village inn

A small hotel with gorgeous interiors, friendly staff, spacious rooms, a proper library, pretty garden and a relaxed, homely feel

An upmarket, very comfortable old stone village house with tasty breakfasts and a sunny courtyard full of colourful flowers

This civilised bolthole offers a quiet retreat, castle views and the magic of Edinburgh on your doorstep

A beautifully designed wooden lodge with hot tub on the deck, glass-front wood-burner, plenty of space and complete immersion in nature

A rural idyll with a hot tub under starlit skies and surrounded by gorgeous countryside in the South Lakes within a hop of vibrant Cartmel

Hilltop château on the edge of a small village half an hour from Saint-Émilion, with a lovely garden, a swimming pool and two lakes

On the riverside, a short walk into Godalming, this lovely 18th-century pub with a peaceful garden has beautiful bedrooms and inventive menus

Grand, elegant, sumptuous – a bucolic bolthole for happy holidays in much comfort, with stunning green views to lake and deer park

Gorgeous small hotel perfectly placed for the magical Dales - stylish bedrooms, open fires, lovely staff and pretty gardens all wait

An 18th-century beamed inn with tasty food, pretty bedrooms and a large garden just a ten-minute drive from Chichester

A much-loved Tuscan villa restored to elegance: dinner on the terrace, frescoes, rose garden, a small spa…and Florence a 20-minute drive