Garden and mountain views from this pretty villa for two - Lake Como shimmers below. Pick up morning pastries in picturesque Mezzegra

Small and elegant family-run hotel with airy bedrooms, plenty of private spaces and a bus to take you to the centre of bustling Avignon

Fall in love with this riverside village, lost in a valley in lower Normandy, and this sunny house for couples or families

Sublime views across the Tuscan countryside, seasonal food and the kindest host. Children are welcome, oenophiles will be in heaven

Just below the Tuscan town of Massa Marittima, an agriturismo loved by sporty types and families, with wonderful food on site

Bask in the beautiful Basque country at this friendly B&B in the village, with family-run restaurant for delicious suppers

A scented garden, delicious local delicacies and those coastal landscapes. This place is a sensory feast

A sylvan hideaway tucked into the hills of the Southern Alps, full of Provençal charm inside and out – Saint-Cézaire and the coast are close

A super old place for those who love history and Thomas Hardy. Come for enjoyable gastropub food and comfortable, traditional bedrooms

Restored 18th-century farm building surrounded by countryside, with a good pub a short walk away and Lake Windermere a ten-minute drive

The sort of inn we all love – open fires, original beams, ancient flags, tasty food, with lovely bedrooms thrown in for good measure

Provençale-meets-English country house to great effect – cycle Mont Ventoux, walk to the monastery, visit Roman towns and vineyards

Come for a quiet, spoiling B&B, delicious breakfasts, delightful wines and a stunning garden with pool in the heart of southern Burgundy

A Victorian farm steading cleverly repurposed as an open-plan holiday home with bright, colourful interiors, deep in the Perthshire hills

Countryside and seaside all in one go – what could be more inspiring? Lovely Louisa lives down the road, on hand if you need her

Come for summer breakfasts of pastries fresh from the local bakery, afternoons reading by the pool and long, lazy lunches

Come for hearty Lakeland adventures, pretty towns and villages, and a rather special stay in this warm and welcoming country inn

Ease into a slower way of life from this beautiful Tuscan farmhouse surrounded by vineyards in the valley below medieval Montepulciano