A former haunt of English noblemen, this B&B is a conversion of two pink colonial-style villas once owned by Sir Daniel Hanbury.

The highlight of this 11th-century restored palace is the infinity pool – heated to a warm temperature year-round, and located at the highest point in Ravello, it has incredible views of the Amalfi coast.

Owned by the Planeta family wine producer, this modern, purpose-built hotel stands amid vines and olive trees in southwest Sicily.

Designed by renowned architect Matteo Thun, Hotel Pergola Residence is set on a hill 3 km from the ski and nature resort of Merano, but hiking trails depart staight from the hotel too.

The location of this quaint and charming hotel could not be bettered – right next to the Spanish Steps.

'One of the best hotels (for the price) that we have stayed in,' says a visitor. The Sagnotti family's palazzo,a hotel for over 150 years, is within walking distance of most of the main attractions.

'One of the attractions of this gem,' write its nominators, 'is its location on a junction of canals just behind the Doge's Palace.'

'Excellently located', this 'beautifully kept' B&B hotel has been run for many years by its owners, the Bechi family.

'Near Piazza Navona and within walking distance of all the sights (we didn't use a taxi the whole time we were in Rome), this centrally located hotel is on a quiet little street and I could sleep at night with my window open,' writes a visitor.

High on a cliff, the pink 12th-century palace of the Sasso family, now a 'very fine hotel', has 'spellbinding views' from its terrace over the Amalfi coast.

Run for many years as a hotel by the Barbaro family, this former medieval convent, founded by St Francis of Assisi in 1222, has long been popular with Guide readers.

Set 1,100m above sea level and 55 yards from ski lifts, this hotel was described by a visitor as 'a delightful, family-run hotel with splendid service. It's a nice old Alpine-style building in a beautiful, peaceful setting.

In this 'old-fashioned summer resort' on the dramatic north Tyrrhenian coast, this 18th-century 'Liberty-style' building stands in lush grounds.

Liked for its welcome, 'quietly efficient staff' and 'excellent value for money', this chalet-style hotel is in a 'very beautiful' skiing and summer resort in the South Tyrol nature reserve, at the foot of the Dolomites.

A former monastery dating from the 17th century, this luxury boutique hotel has been sympathetically restored by owner Bianca Sharma; features such as vaulted celings and wooden shutters on the windows remain, but rooms are fully-furnished with antiques hand-picked by Bianca herself.

On a cliff-top road outside an old fishing village just south of the Cinque Terre, this restaurant-with-rooms is run by its “very helpful owners”, chef Angelo Cabani and his wife, Giovanna.

In a quietish street near the Piazza del Popolo, this Art Deco hotel opened in 1925 and later increased its size by extending into an adjacent building.

In a relatively quiet part of the city, by the Accademia, this 14th-century palazzo is part of the Design Hotels group.

A 17th-century villa which was the Russian consulate when Venice was an independent republic, this well-known pensione has a 'super position' by a side canal, near the Grand Canal at the Accademia bridge.

You need to be fit to stay at Villa Cimbrone. If you can”t afford to arrive by helicopter, you approach by a 15-minute uphill walk through the pedestrian zone on Ravello”s steep hillside (your luggage travels in a small truck).

A 17th-century former palace refurbished into a luxury hotel in 2013, Hotel Ai Reali is set on a quiet canal between the Rialto and Piazza San Marco.

Until the 1940s a holiday home of the Italian royal family, this rectangular pink 19th-century villa retains a 'charming air of gently fading elegance', says its nominator.

Located in the centre of Capri but surrounded by beautiful landscaped gardens, nearly all of the rooms at this peaceful family-owned and run boutique hotel have sea views and terraces or balconies.

Above a small town (once a Roman settlement) east of Trento, this medieval castle stands in large wooded grounds: 'a marvellous setting'.

You can see the remains of Pompey's theatre (55BC) in the breakfast room/bar of this small hotel run by the Cavarocchi-Mignoni family.

This hotel, set in an art deco villa on Amalfi drive, offers a genteel, old-fashioned charm, and has been in the same family since it opened as a hotel with six rooms in 1904.

This small town (famous for its marble sculptures), with wooded hills behind and sea stretching out in front, is a 30-minute train ride north of Lucca.

Owned and managed by Lorenzo Muner, Oltre Il Giardino is set in the San Polo area of Venice, just a few steps from the Church of Frari and 15 minutes from St Mark's Square.

On the edge of this Dolomite resort (Wolkenstein in Gröden in German) at the foot of the impressive Sella massif, this 'superb hotel', renovated last in 2013, is run by its owner, Carlo Senoner (a skiing world champion at Portillo, Chile, 1966), with his wife, son and daughter.

On the corner of the tiny square of this small, unspoilt Tuscan town stands Anne-Marie and Ueli Bleuler-Staerkle's hotel; from the back it commands a 'tremendous view of distant hills and mountains'.