Dog friendly holiday cottage, sleeps 8 - Isle of Purbeck, Dorset

This cliff-top cottage is the perfect place to unplug from the everyday and reconnect with loved ones. Offering stunning sea views and sleeping eight guests in four soothing bedrooms, it is pet-friendly and has two sitting rooms, an Aga to inspire every culinary effort, and an enclosed garden. Walk a mile and you'll reach a secluded cove ideal for swimming, or drive 6 miles to Swanage for traditional seaside fun.

Once a coastguard's abode, this characterful cliff-top retreat is one of a small terrace of cottages on St Alban's Head. Reached via a 1.5-mile unmade road, this is a place where you can truly get away from it all – the sea is on both sides, the skies are big, and the views at sunrise are breathtaking! Inside, there's an uncluttered, cool coastal feel.

Two adjacent lounges offer space for eight people and two pets to spend precious time together – the first is a light-filled room with a choice of seating, a TV and doors to the second room where there's another open fire and a selection of toys and games. The elegant tiled floor flows through to the generously sized kitchen, where an AGA sits alongside all the essentials for an effortless self-catering stay, including an initial supply of bottled water. Light the wood burner in the dining room next door and you'll linger at the table long after the last dish has been cleared.

A convenient cloakroom is also on the ground floor, while the main bathroom is upstairs alongside four bedrooms, each elegantly furnished and looking across countryside or out to sea. Choose from a king-size room, two double rooms or one twin – early risers will love the sunrise views from those at the front of the house. Lap up more of those views from the large, lawned garden which is fully enclosed and furnished with table and chairs.

Grade I-listed St Aldhelm's Chapel stands close to the cliff edge, less than 100 metres away.