Rural and coastal escapes

When you feel the need to escape from the world, you can find rural retreats in villages that cling to the sides of cliffs, tumbling down to bays of blue. The only noises you’ll hear will be the crash of the surf and the call of the seagulls, and the hardest decision you’ll make is which flavour of ice cream to choose. For a weekend country break of a different kind head inland across cattle grids and over ditches and dales to cosy boltholes to be greeted with homemade cake, safe in the knowledge that the only blackberry to worry about is the one atop your scone.