14 dreamy UK holiday cottages with swimming pools

This nineteenth-century Cotswold stone barn is surrounded by peaceful Oxfordshire countryside. You won’t need to venture far to embrace your natural surroundings, in fact, there’s a natural swimming pond just outside the back door – a happy middle ground between your local lido and wild swimming – for cooling down in summer or making use of your wetsuit in the winter. Sleeping six across three grand bedrooms, this is an ideal family or friends getaway. When you're not exploring the countryside and water, you can all be cosy near the big firespace, or lounge on the garden patio.

Picture a grand beamed-exterior home in a leafy part of Kent. This is it and more. On fair-weather days, there are huge gardens, a patio for BBQs, and a sizable pool for splashing around in, plus a pool house with garden games (including pool, actually) in case things turn grey. When you're not galavanting around the opulent accommodation, you can make use of being right next to Kent Downs, which is an Area of Natural Beauty. 

Here's a UK stay that you will not forget. This is, frankly, Bond-villain levels of luxury. North Rock Beach House is perched on a cliff above Sennen Cove, one of Cornwall’s loveliest beaches. So the views from the pool and loungers are absolutely ridiculous. Cliff-edges and horizon-stretching seascapes. There;s also an outdoor dining space and a conservatory for sunny evenings, or a beautiful stone fireplace and cosy furnishings for the colder nights. It's everything you could ever want. Cornwall isn't half bad to explore either!

This former farmyard barn in rural Gloucestershire, Box Barn sleeps 17 people, making it very comfortable for large-scale escapes. If you don't know 17 people, you can just make use of all that great space anyway. There's a games room, massive cooking range, opulent dining room, and of course outside you’ll find a private heated pool that has a handy retractable roof, so that you can still practise your backstroke in a classic English summer downpour. Maybe especially in the downpour! You might want to explore the Dean Forest, Gloucester Quays, and more while it's sunny. 

Like the idea of going all Famous Five and sleeping under canvas but don’t want to totally rough it? These off-grid bell tents in a patch of peaceful woodland have compost loos, firepits and… an indoor, heated swimming pool. The dream.

Cotswolds village, or California hills? This glass, timber and stone holiday cottage was built in the '60s and features a private swimming pool and generous poolside area for sunset cocktails and lazy afternoons.

This bright and light cottage in Hampshire might only be a mile or so from the sea, but there’s one good reason to stay put. Most of the rooms open out onto a private pool, which is heated even in the summer months, so you’ve got zero excuse not to jump in at the deep end. 

Not only does this rustic Somerset barn have a private hot tub and sauna, but it also features an enormous pool which you'll easily be able to share with a couple of other neighbouring rentals. Located near Glastonbury, you'll have stunning countryside walks at your doorstep, plus three excellent pubs nearby.

Now, we won’t pretend this place is cheap, but if you’ve got cash to spend and like your holidays to look like they’re straight out of an architecture mag, Linea is the one. Set in a dramatic spot, high above the Atlantic in north Devon, this dreamy rental (which sleeps 10) boasts a super-stylish vibe and the kind of infinity pool people fly to Bali for.

You get bumper views from this cute little cottage on the Welsh-English border. It looks out over miles of verdant countryside – plus the pool just beyond the front door. Heated from June until August, the pool sits in three acres of private garden.

An idyllic-looking English cottage within daytripping distance of the north Norfolk coastline, this rental comes with its own private, heated swimming pool framed by neat decking and tall hedges. On a sunny day, you’ll have a hard time believing you’re not on the Med.

Just off of Fistral Beach in Cornwall’s Newquay, this enormous rental – it sleeps 24 – cashes in on the area’s surfy atmosphere with a private pool, colourful bean bags, hot tub, poolside bar and giant BBQ for refuelling after a day catching waves (or at least attempting to).

Don’t trust the Great British Summer to provide suitable rays? We’re not sure we blame you. So for guaranteed fun in the pool, book the Cider Barn. The stunning indoor pool is surrounded by glass, with views out over the Devon countryside. And if the sun does shine, the beaches of Salcombe and Slapton are a quick drive away.