Stylish interiors, beautiful rooms, lovely staff and wonderful food – all this in the Forest of Dean with great walking and cycling trails

Lavender shortbread and baked peaches for breakfast at this most artistic of homes. The courtyard with magnolia and orange trees is lovely

A sweet bolthole around a courtyard on a smallholding, extremely comfortable, bright and spacious inside and with a communal garden

For walkers and lovers of wildly beautiful coastal country: two cosy old cottages and a bright, modern renovation in a cluster with others

Chatty Madame is a superb cook, and her pretty house and garden in a quiet Yvelines village are equally delicious. Zip to Paris by train

Rooms in the house overlook the vineyard, the lodges are surrounded by it - check out the vines, then drink their wine with a good dinner

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

A magical chateau set in the forested hills of Burgundy with lovely rooms, peaceful walks, home cooking and a merry welcome

In four acres of garden and woodland (a child’s dream) a house and interlinking barn for 10 guests. Secluded but close to everything

An exquisitely restored 500-year-old inn, where the accent is very much on food, reared and grown nearby and with very comfortable rooms

You’ll love Tintinhull Gardens, Montacute House, Ham Hill, the Prince of Wales pub... and this sweet, fresh, cosy, rustic cottage for two

Light-filled gites share a lovely pool, with pétanque, ping-pong and bikes to borrow – bring friends and take all three

Special back-to-nature, stargazing loft for couples and families, on a nature-filled estate in Piedmont

An elegant hotel that feels like a well-kept secret, with charming staff, understated rooms and great restaurants a short walk away

This deeply peaceful retreat will soothe the soul; come to walk, bike, sail then back to a roaring fire and good book. A sublime spot

An old farm worker's cottage, niftily done up and nicely remote, with walking and fishing on the doorstep, four miles from Hadrian's Wall

A beautiful little collection of trulli near the Valle d’Itria – restored with flair and with gardens, woods and pool