Set in a private valley comprising eight acres of lush South Hams countryside, a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, these four de-luxe cottages overlook the estate’s “lost gardens of Kingsbridge”. The linen and towels are organic and the natural toiletries made by aromAware in Plymouth.

A hemp-made hamper of Devon treats awaits guests in the kitchen, and includes freshly unearthed produce from the estate’s organic gardener Rose Wood. Each cottage has its own terrace where you can sit back and breathe in the air of what the owners claim is Lower Coombe’s own “O zone” area surrounded by ancient and young trees.

The cottages use sustainable energy sources such as a biomass boiler run on wood pellets, solar panels and green electric power.

There are plans to open a swimming pond supplied by a well and hydro power. There’s no need to use the car either: the market town of Kingsbridge is a five-minute walk and there’s a choice of Blue Flag beaches on the doorstep reachable by bus or ferry.

Green Spaces: April's nominations

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The 2008 Green Spaces Travel awards

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Green Spaces: The Eco Lodge, Lincolnshire, England

Mickey Burke and family visit the Lincolnshire cottage they nominated for our 2008 Green Spaces Travel awards

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Cottages sleep between two and 18 people and cost from £550 per week to £1,680 (01548 852880 or 07710 854510; lowercoomberoyal.co.uk

Trelowarren, Cornwall

The bar is raised high at Trelowarren: its long-term aim is to be carbon neutral, self sufficient in food and fuel and a “green paradise” for people and wildlife. In a wooded glade at the heart of this 1,000-acre private estate on the Lizard peninsula sits a converted Georgian barn and an eco-community of currently about a dozen new-build houses that has garnered accolades for its pioneering green spirit.

The swimming pool is naturally filtered and heated to a constant 28 degrees Celsius (82F); the heating for the pool and houses comes from a pipe linked to a boiler fired by coppicing from the estate.

There are woodland walks, a walled organic garden and at the New Yard restaurant in the converted stable yard, 90 per cent of the chef’s ingredients come from within a 10-mile radius, including clams from the Helford River, fish and shellfish caught by local day boats and game, herbs and fruit sourced from the estate itself. The award-winning Eden Project, a fascinating complex of biome conservatories, is a short drive away.

Houses that sleep 6-8 from £500 low season 01326 222105; www.trelowarren.co.uk

Moss Grove Organic Hotel, Cumbria

Moss Grove opened in early 2007, with a mission to be as sustainable and environmentally friendly as possible. Spot-lit at night (with low-energy one-watt bulbs, of course) this grand, gabled Victorian house in Grasmere promises all the lush green magic of a poem by its most famous son, William Wordsworth.

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