High in Ávila's unspoilt nature is this stylish, eco-brilliant family hotel: mountains, massages, pool, organic dinners... a special escape

A real gem set back from the hustle and bustle but perfectly placed to explore the city's many charms

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

An ever-changing interior for this stunning pod, commissioned by a different artist each year. Creative, fun - a Sawday's Community Champion

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

A beautiful rural escape for couples or families with the delights of the Cotswolds all around. Dogs very welcome too

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

A lovely listed cottage, just stumbling distance from a good pub in a quiet village surrounded by spectacular walking and cycling country

A 16th-century characterful gem right on the harbourside, serving excellent food at reasonable prices and with pleasant bedrooms

Gracious Florentine hospitality, elegance and comfort, gazebo breakfasts, a flower-filled garden with pool and views of olive groves

In a hamlet in the Loire countryside is a friendly estate with a family-sized gite, a shared saltwater pool and heaps of old-world charm

Warm hospitable agriturismo for foodies, designers, wine enthusiasts and all who love the 'real' Sicily. A happy place for families, too

Fabulous bakes and hot waffles at breakfast, green fields all around and Normandy steeped in history. Great for foodies and historians

Elegance and ease mark this gentle group of Loire-Valley buildings, with soft-textured interiors and the owners’ fine hospitality and food

A light and airy barn conversion, very comfortable and rural, sitting on a hill with views to the south overlooking the Stour valley

Three very special places to stay on one glorious estate. Gather those whose company you enjoy and immerse yourselves in beauty and history

Come for good architecture, thoughtful design and much space for relaxing: swimming, massages, hammam and sauna, beautiful bedrooms