A bit of a walk from Capri's small main square, Piazza Umberto, in a pleasant residential area, this small modern villa is 'stylish, efficient and vertiginous', says a visitor this year.

Set in a 15th-century stone manor house on a hillside ten minutes' drive above Lake Garda and offering 'spectacular views of the lake', this hotel prizes tranquillity above all else – even eschewing the hum of air-conditoning for antique fans and minibars for a civilized self-service bar.

Ever-popular, Simone Simoni's 'blissfully quiet' pensione in a residential area on a hilltop just north-west of Florence represents 'amazing value', say its devotees.

Ten minutes away from the cable car which takes you to Pila ski resort in 20 minutes, this modern and recently refurbished hotel offers 'a pleasant stay, with excellent and helpful staff', according to a recent visitor.

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.

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

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.

With 'stunning views' over Florence and the surrounding hills, this family friendly hotel 'couldn't be faulted' by a visitor.

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.

'We cannot think of a nicer, better-run seaside hotel,' says a devotee of this large hotel, built on the site of a villa once owned by the aristocratic Dogi family.

A former watchtower for the Knights of Malta, dating back to the 15th century, has been turned into this five-star deluxe resort.

What Casa Buonocore may lack in amentities such as a pool or direct beach access, it more than makes up for with beautiful country-chic interior design and intimacy.

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

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.

The Sersale family's summer home was turned into this spectacular hotel in 1951, and is still run by descendants of the original brothers.

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'.

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 location of this stylish new hotel (it opened in 2015) couldn't be bettered – it's 100m from Florence Cathedral and in easy walking distance of the city's major sights.

Hotel Casci isn't fancy, but considering the location (150m from Florence Cathedral) the rates are very reasonable and the owners, the Lombardi family, pride themselves on being some of the friendliest hoteliers in town.

By the Uffizi Gallery, Elisabetta Matucci's B&B is a 15th-century building in a little pedestrianised street (reached under an ancient arch) off the Piazza della Signoria.

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

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.

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).

This small Tuscan hilltop hotel, much loved by Guide readers over many years, has been owned by the famous Della Robbia family since the 16th century.

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.

John Ruskin stayed in this pensione on the Dorsoduro in 1877. Now owned by Marc Sibuet and Regina Segre Amar, who promise 'discreet service and peace', it faces the Giudecca canal.

A stone-clad 19th-century nobleman's residence, modelled on a 14th century fortress, Villa Carlotta, perches high on a cliff above the Ionian Sea, with stunning panoramic views…

'Quite simply, one of the best small hotels we have stayed in.'

'Our favourite small hotel in the world,' said one GHG reader after his fourth visit. 'Its position, above the town, gives it the feel of a private hideaway.

High above the road, on the far side of the village (Sulden in German), this chalet-style hotel has fine views to the glacier and the Ortler range of mountains.