This old stone building, a former olive warehouse, is beautifully restored and sits on its own – a simple bolthole for rest and recuperation

A grand dining hall and super kitchen, perfect for big gatherings. Spot spoonbills on the salt marsh, sea swim or walk to delis and pubs

An elegant, super central bolthole for two (or three): stroll everywhere, hop on a vaporetto, sit in piazzas drinking cappuccino, live like a local

A peaceful, very stylish bolthole for 2 on the doorstep of glorious Holyrood Park, with Edinburgh’s sights a stroll away

Gardeners will be very happy staying in this generous, comfortable B&B surrounded by stunning gardens with year-round interest

An 18th-century fisherman's cottage with garden at the end of a cobbled row, for happy seaside holidays with superb beaches nearby

Perfect château B&B with pointy turrets and pale blue shutters, surrounded by gorgeous countryside, a cycle route and ancient villages

Elegant Italian style in a sensitively-restored villa with sweeping views over rolling hills and forests

Manor house in the grounds of a quintessential 18th-century French château with pretty gardens and lots of space just 3kms from Bayeux

Old wooden sleigh beds, check-clothed tables, log fires, a courtyard of centuries-old trees, a claw foot bath. Stacks of character

A cosy cottage on a farm down a long winding track, wonderfully rural with footpaths across fields or along the canal

A sustainably run 1902 farmhouse and a cottage in countryside close to a wonderfully wild stretch of the North Devon coast

Follow in Picasso’s footsteps and spin up to vibrant Sheffield for a night at this stunning hotel, where flawless bedrooms wait

Wooded, lakeside retreat for 1 or 2 – big windows, huge terrace, wood-burner, wide screen. The Jurassic coast a cross-country walk away

A hop to Montpellier, but deep in the countryside: a romantic pad, with Moroccan rugs, ochre-limed walls and bikes to ride into the country

An ideal stopover at a handsome 1790 house on the edge of a small village surrounded by beautiful countryside and with friendly young owners

Come for fine food and drink, sumptuous bedrooms and a relaxed, informal atmosphere at this gorgeous Cotswold manor house with ancient roots