Once a lofty edifice for music recitals, now an original place to stay - with stained-glass windows, a bed on a stage and wild gardens

Friendly owners settle you in to this cool, creatively styled barn. Perfect for groups & families with big pool & garden

Surrounded by wildlife and water, this ultra-modern house has huge windows, white walls and designer furnishings. Blissfully remote

A delightful mix of old and new in a conservation village with a four-acre garden that attracts all the local birds. Guests love it here

A cool converted barn on an organic farm near Brittany’s loveliest beaches, with a kitchen garden and play area, perfect for foodie families

In a chocolate-box village just an hour on the train, and a short hop in a taxi, from London is this foodie inn with pretty bedrooms

Bedrooms have seersucker linen, doors open to the countryside and Beaune is a hop away. David and Niels ensure a memorable stay

Find beauty and tranquillity on this historic Dordogne estate for up to fourteen - plus a feast of designer colour and a fine pool to share

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

Lovely views over the river Anglin from the large windows of this old industrial-like building, once used for honey production on the estate

Sun-soaked stillness, saltwater dips and garden scents of fig and rosemary - slow days unfold between olive trees and a sky full of stars

A large, attractive 18th-century house with sweeping lawns, outdoor seating areas and two free-standing baths by an ivy-clad wall

Award-winning Aga-cooked breakfasts, scented candles, gorgeous beds... Come for a break from clock-watching and a spot of Shropshire air

A lake to fish, a terrace for evening sun and a choice of two spaces with a shared pool and games room, a short hop from pretty Auvillar

You get the best of all worlds here. Delicious beds, Provençal soaps, vineyard views, fresh croissants a stroll away…

Choose between airy bedrooms up an elegant stair, or magnificent rooms at garden-level with private terraces. Find sweetness and warmth

Elegant country château with a family feel, for big groups with or without children, and those who seek inspiration

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