A warm and colourful B&B with generous owners, elegant bedrooms and an outdoor pool, in the heart of a pretty town near Toulouse

An incredible living museum, dedicated to the history of Sicily and the arts. Stay in the main house or in a cottage in the fecund garden

A stately retreat, an oasis of calm and beauty. Picnic on the lawns, enjoy a glass of home-produced prosecco beneath a centuries-old tree

Woodland retreat above Loch Tummel. Silence, sunsets and star-filled skies in a 70s bungalow that blends retro charm with modern comfort

A glorious château near Tours – authentic, huge fun, steeped in family history and surrounded by gorgeous gardens with a serene pool

Breathe, relax in peaceful Provençal countryside: olives, lavender and budding fruit trees. Aix's lively markets are 10 minutes away

Cosy bolthole for two in a charming market town on the edge of Dartmoor – stroll to restaurants and shops or explore the moors

In a commanding position surrounded by private land, this old manor house is excellently equipped and ideal for a big family holiday

Close to Girona, with huge valley views! Cosy fires for cool days, shady corners for hot ones, lovely people, and the food a revelation

A dramatic house with stylish interiors – designed to bring the outdoors in so you feel wrapped in nature. Great for families or friends

A bit like staying with friends in a smart country house, but not having to help - an elegant refuge near Bradford-on-Avon

By a lake, enclosed by woodland - a contemporary house and barn, full of handmade furniture – laze in a hammock, walk the Jurassic Coast

In the National Park with all its glories (Ashbourne for antiques, Chatsworth for history, Bakewell for its market), a sweet village cottage

Special back-to-nature, stargazing loft for couples and families, on a nature-filled estate in Piedmont

A calm, leafy bolthole in one of Paris' most elegant districts. Step out to stylish boutiques, good bakeries – and the Eiffel Tower

A 19th-century bothy in remote, rugged countryside on the edge of the Cairngorms, for walkers, birders and seekers of peace

The views are sensational, the bedrooms full of charm and higgledy-piggledy beams. Sip Perigord Noir on the terrace and amble to the market