A smartly renovated 250-year-old brick and flint built inn, tucked away in a sleepy village beneath the glorious South Downs

Plenty of uncluttered easy space both in and out by the private pool - children love the freedom - great wine, food, and cycling country

Chocolate-box cottages in deepest Normandy, owned by bright young things with a passion for organic cuisine and the good life

Inspiring art-filled Menorcan townhouse in Mahón’s old quarter; explore the city, cycle or hike the island’s gorges and feast on seafood

A beautiful villa with a medieval tower surrounded by formal gardens, gentle slopes of perfectly maintained vineyards and wooded hilltops

Pluck grapes, splash in the child-shallow pool and explore the ‘Yorkshire of Italy’ with rolling green hills and conical trulli

Ascot is a trot down the road and there's a really cosy, cottagey feel to this quaint 18th-century inn with great food and comfy bedrooms

Fringing Tuscany countryside and fun Montone, an authentic Umbrian mansion with Slow Food, lavender fields, apartments and pool. Pure Italy

Philippe and Stéphanie give you delicious food and comfortable, colourful bedrooms in their ancient château with gardens and pool

A fabulous country boozer, revamped in style with a buzzy atmosphere, great food and welcoming bedrooms - good walking countryside too

Take a suite with champagne, strawberries and a tower, swim in the saltwater pool, eat a Castilian cocido - unwind in rural peace!

Former blacksmith’s workshop in a chocolate-box corner of the New Forest, where clematis climbs the trellis and all you hear are the birds

A neat, recently restored townhouse inside Panicale's medieval walls with plenty of space and everything within walking distance

An historic, moated manor house dating from the 16th-century, fully restored and with all mod cons, including an indoor heated pool

Come to recharge in the lovely Loire valley at this fine château surrounded by mature gardens and green countryside

Unwind in a hammock, in the pool, in a balconied rose-coloured bedroom - meander local markets, pick a pepper, cook up a feast and have fun

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

Grade II-listed country hotel with lovely gardens and an excellent restaurant, a short walk from Ambleside and the top of Lake Windermere