Three gîtes in the Dordogne with panoramic countryside views and a swimming pool – book individually or together for a group holiday

Stables turned into bright, comfortable holiday homes in countryside near Battle - for couples and families, whose dogs are very welcome too

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

An airy converted barn with beautiful woodwork and countryside views. Reach riverside restaurants and St Malo within a 15-minute drive

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

An eye-catching ancient inn with a colourful flower garden in summer, delicious local food and very presentable bedrooms

Family cottage within 25 acres of fields, garden and orchard with fresh eggs to collect, wellies for walking and animals roaming the farm

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

Elegant house with sprawling gardens and space for family and friends, within walking distance of the coast

Bags of character within and without at this four-storey village house with rooftop views over the mountains, next to a 12th-century church

Peaceful Highland hideaway on a wooded lochside: spy dolphins and otters, stargaze, and soak up the deep silence

Blissful views to vineyards and mountains from this faithful reproduction of a 16th-century manor. Eat well, hike, bike, sauna and swim

A stylish hotel, tucked away yet central, an unusually quiet base for exploring Rome just a three-minute walk from the tube station

Comfortable and cosy B&B with superb food, tucked away on a dairy farm in the very quietest part of Pembrokeshire near the coast path

A gorgeous apartment in the heart of a Jacobean-style manor house with sweeping views over woodlands and the wonderful gardens

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

A cosy, beautifully refurbished flat in a Georgian house bang in the middle of the unspoilt town with its pretty streets and houses

Go with the slow - homemade delights, no plastic anything, few mod cons - just relaxed humorous hosts and a beautiful place