Dreamy properties in Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty
Green and pleasant.


Kent, £1.295 million
Elphick’s Oast, a twin-oast and barn conversion off a country lane not far from the village of Goudhurst, in the High Weald AONB, dates from 1909. It was transformed in 1981 into a four-bedroom house. One of the roundel rooms is a library and there is also a balcony, Cornish-slate-paved terraces, woods and a 2.6-acre field. Savills (01580 720161; www.onthemarket.com)
- - -
West Sussex, £2.6 million
Classic Regency Compton House is discreetly located at the centre of one of the South Downs National Park’s most coveted villages, within more than an acre of private walled gardens, including a kitchen garden. There are eight bedrooms and outbuildings include a former coach house, stabling and groom’s quarters, suitable for conversion. Jackson-Stops & Staff (01243 786316; countrylife.onthemarket.com)
- - -
Hampshire, £1.25 million
In pretty Breamore, near Fordingbridge, in the Avon Valley, bridging the gap between the New Forest and the Cranborne Chase AONB, five-bedroom Willow & Marshgate enjoys unspoilt views over water meadows. Its recent renovation has preserved period features such as the inglenook fireplaces and flint walls. Winkworth (01722 443000; countrylife.onthemarket.com)
- - -
North Yorkshire, £3.25 million
Believed to date from the 1600s, seven-bedroom The Old Rectory, Oswaldkirk, on the edge of the Howardian Hills and the North York Moors National Park, has a Georgian wing (which includes the kitchen and an orangery with French doors), a large York-stone terrace and walled gardens stretching to the south. There’s also a substantial bothy with a bar and stabling. Knight Frank (01423 530088; countrylife.onthemarket.com)
Exquisite houses, the beauty of Nature, and how to get the most from your life, straight to your inbox.
Annunciata is director of contemporary art gallery TIN MAN ART and an award-winning journalist specialising in art, culture and property. Previously, she was Country Life’s News & Property Editor. Before that, she worked at The Sunday Times Travel Magazine, researched for a historical biographer and co-founded a literary, art and music festival in Oxfordshire. Lancashire-born, she lives in Hampshire with a husband, two daughters and a mischievous pug.
-
A spectacular tower for sale that's a blend of Victorian folly, architectural marvel and 21st century family home
Hadlow Tower has space, and a back story of love, jealousy and intrigue.
By Toby Keel Published
-
Some Like (to quiz when) It Hot: Country Life Quiz of the Day heatwave special, July 11, 2025
If you're struggling to keep cool — and who isn't? — our Quiz of the Day will at least take your mind off the soaring temperatures.
By Country Life Published