A black shed doesn’t sound very romantic, but this isn’t any old shed. It’s an award-winning contemporary dwelling on an 18-acre croft amid breathtaking scenery in north-west Skye. Set on a hill at the foot of Macleod’s Tables it looks out to Loch Dunvegan and Dunvegan Castle on the opposite shore of the loch. Photograph: PR
You could hide away for days in this remote cottage surrounded by fields in a secluded, tranquil valley. There's no TV, but bring your iPod and play it as loud as you like – your only neighbours are the sheep. Photograph: PR
If you’ve ever fantasised about living in an ultra modern steel-and-glass home, this is a good place for a trial run. In the small village of Prickwillow but inspired by the California Case Study Houses (a post-second world war American experiment that saw leading architects of the day design and build moden homes), the property has featured in several architecture books. Sliding glass doors lead out onto a patio with views of the Fens and Ely cathedral about three miles away. Photograph: PR
If you can deal with the pressure of booking somewhere called the Love Cottage over Valentine’s Day, this one-bed conversion on the top floor of a 16th-century barn is a lovely retreat for a romantic break, with a four-poster and mullioned windows. The cottage is on an estate which you’re free to walk around – guests also have fishing rights for the river Aire. Just up the road from the market town of Skipton – gateway to the dales – it’s also a good base for hiking. Three nights from 13 February costs £300, or stay for four nights from £340 (yorkshire-cottages.info/yorkshire-dales). Photograph: PR
This converted 18th-century stable in the grounds of Horselygate Hall, where its owners live, screams “countryside”, with a stag’s head and a saddle hanging on the walls, a beamed ceiling, exposed brickwork and a pale blue Rayburn. Photograph: PR
Witherdens Hall is a retreat offering courses focused largely on the spiritual (reiki, sound healing) although there are more practical workshops too (breadmaking, bee-keeping). They also have a host of bookable therapists offering massage, and other healing techniques. Photograph: PR
If romance for you is blustery walks by the sea, few pads are better-placed than this. A cute chalet with french doors opening straight on to decking overlooking the beach at Monk’s Bay (but on a private cul-de-sac, so no danger of passers-by knocking on the door and asking for a nose around) it’s a little gem for beach lovers. Photograph: PR
Whether it's sunny or grey, the views of river and sky from your bed will lift your spirits. This lovely retreat, once an apple-sorting barn, has a galley kitchen, a bed on a low platform, and wood beam and glass doors that open onto a balcony - and the river beyond. The interior is stylish, with whitewashed wood panelling, and the woodburner takes centre stage. Nearby, you can explore the gardens of Dartington Hall – or you might fancy taking a wood-turning course, available on the farm next door. North Barn costs from either £100 a night or £500 a week, and is available from 5-20 February through sawdays.co.uk/self-catering. Photograph: PR
Cheesey - not in style, but in shape - this quirky triangular property is thought to be England's only three-cornered house. In the heart of the medieval old town in Hastings, it was built for a £5 bet in 1871. Photograph: PR
If it's seclusion you're after, this is the place – tucked away at the end of a track, surrounded by trees, and perched on the edge of Ullswater with its own private stretch of shore. Photograph: PR
