Five miles north of Brecon, this contemporary, horseshoe-shaped barn conversion lets the landscape take centre stage. There are fabulous views of the Brecon Beacons from its huge windows … Photograph: Lucy Gold/PR
Indoors, besides the artist owner's contemporary paintings, distractions are kept to a minimum, with white walls, wood and slate floors and a bespoke sunken kitchen.
• 01874 676446, breconcottages.com Sleeps eight, from £959 a week
Pets allowed, no kids Photograph: Lucy Gold/PR
As the name suggests, this picture-postcard retreat is set deep in the Welsh hills. The once-ruined farmhouse at its heart has been restored and modernised; walk-in showers and wood-burning stoves are big plus points for the comfort-seeking hikers who stay here. With three bedrooms in the farmhouse and two in an adjacent barn – each building with its own kitchen and living room – it's a useful property for groups keen to sub-divide … Photograph: PR
And, unlike the farmers who once toiled here, you can lie back in luxury, admiring Hay Bluff from the comfort of a hot tub.
• 07772 052700, thehouseinthehills.co.uk. Sleeps 10, from £1,355 a week Photograph: PR
For both history and comfort in equal measure, Millbrook ticks all the boxes. An Elizabethan hall house close to Llanthony Priory and foodie Abergavenny, it comes with an Aga, a window seat, ancient flagstones and beams and a proper open fire, as well as contemporary rain showers, clawfoot baths and a well-equipped kitchen equipped for the most finicky modern chefs … Photograph: PR
The proudly unreconstructed Skirrid Mountain Inn is five minutes' walk away while, for posher grub, the Walnut Tree, and the Hardwick and the Bell at Skenfrith are all nearby.
• 01865 764087, sheepskinlife.com. Sleeps six, from £1,655 a week Photograph: PR
After a stay at this rustic wooden cabin outside Hay-on-Wye, you won't be surprised to discover that the owners run a horse-training business. There's more than a touch of cowboy chic hereto this rustic wooden cabin outside Hay-on-Wye, with stetsons on the wall, a saddle in the sitting area and cowboy-print bed linen … Photograph: PR
It's cosy rather than corny, though, with a wood-burning stove and a porch with a rocking chair completing the frontier fantasy.
• 01348 830922, qualityunearthed.co.uk. Sleeps two, from £263 a week Photograph: PR
A simple, stylish cottage, set back from the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal, this colourful upside-down hideaway has a hint of retro about it, with a 1950s cabinet in the large dining kitchen, patchwork-covered stools and vintage lamps. Downstairs are a smart double bedroom and a bright twin … Photograph: PR
A modern bathroom, with double-ended tub, twin sinks and a separate walk-in shower, adds a dose of luxury – an appropriate one, given that the house was once the village laundry.
• 01873 890415, sugarandloaf.com. Sleeps four, from £465 a week
Pets allowed Photograph: PR
