A small, stylish hotel lost in the country with beautiful rooms, excellent food, fine walking and a river passing directly outside

This small hotel with pool has elegant communal spaces, spoiling bedrooms, kind staff, delicious food and panoramic mountain views

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

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

An elegant hotel that feels like a well-kept secret, with charming staff, understated rooms and great restaurants a short walk away

Straight out of a fairy tale, a rustic cottage by a babbling brook: a magical escape for couples, the craggy coast in easy reach

A converted Victorian schoolhouse with a glorious oak bar, an impressive selection of gins, hearty food and attractive bedrooms

Come to stay in a lovely old house surrounded by an important garden created by three generations of brilliant women gardeners

A Regency farmhouse sitting in a wrap-around garden with views to mountain and sea for wonderful walking, cycling and swimming

Stone farmhouse on a country estate, family-run for centuries. Views of the towered gatehouse, pool and tennis court, a walk to the river...

Quaint barns dotted among truffle oaks and rosemary, each one constructed the old-fashioned way and close to the Dordogne and Vézère

Hike the Wild Boar Fells, get cosy at home with books, games and DVDs, and meet the farm’s hens, cows and sheep

A heartwarming 250-year-old pub with roaring fires in the flagged bar, attractive bedrooms and a special welcome for children and dogs

Traditional accommodation and organic food; handy for Bari but set peacefully in the countryside near Toritto, famed for its almonds

A peaceful, beautiful place to wake up in and to return to after glorious walks, with no near neighbours apart from curious sheep

This cottage is stylish and serene, beautifully transformed from an old farm building – come for golf, beaches, walks and bird-watching

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

Idyllic cottage hidden in deepest, foodiest Somerset - bask on your own patio among roses and sweet peas. Bring bikes - loads to explore