Woolbrook Reservoir

Whatever it is that's even more impressive than having the 'wow factor' – that's the phrase for the extraordinary property that is Woolbrook Reservoir, a sunken, state-of-the-art, glass-framed celebration home that is the grandest of all grand designs. Hidden away, and tucked into the space of a former reservoir, this is a magical open glass circle on two floors, with a sensational atrium, courtyard and upper-level garden that blends the whole into the surrounding countryside, just a mile or two outside the charming, olde-worlde Devon resort of Sidmouth.

It's simply huge – six bedrooms (two en-suite) and four bathrooms in total – and with soaring, sky-high glass walls throughout, so light floods in wherever you are. It's a contemporary, open-plan design – think any Californian luxury pad you've ever seen – and you'd struggle to come up with any luxury amenity or facility that they haven't thought of. The kitchen is ridiculously high-spec, there are massive wall-mounted screens in the vast dining room, dedicated cocktail cabinets, sound systems throughout, full games room (pool table and darts board to electronic keyboard and Xbox), and an impressive gym/weight-training room. The bedrooms are utterly gorgeous – each individually designed, with a cutting-edge urban feel – featuring a wall full of cacti on floating shelves here, or Asian-inspired art and objets there. The master-suite is an incredible purple-draped boudoir with an elaborately carved ebony bed and matching furniture, and a Japanese-influenced bathroom.

Outside is, if anything, even more eye-popping. The glass walls wrap around a spacious courtyard – you can throw the French doors wide open to make this a genuine outside-inside entertainment space, with its decking, rattan garden suite, firebowl set-up. An under-cover area provides more games and sheltered dining, along with a designer fire-BBQ system that adds pizza oven, smoker and rotisserie into the mix. There's more too – stairs leading up to the upper, private, lawned garden, which is at ground level and has far-reaching countryside views. This is where you'll find more seating and sun-loungers, your own cabana-style drinks bar, a wood-fired hot tub, and a private woodland to wander in.

It's genuinely hard to think of a holiday home that could be further from the traditional view of a self-catering property. Harder still to believe that this is England, as you throw open the curtains onto walls of glass or relax on acres of decking and watch the clouds scud across blue skies from the hot tub. You will leave Woolbrook eventually – nearby Sidmouth is lovely, and the coastal path and local beaches sorely tempting – but this is one holiday home that will tug at your heart every time you step beyond its oh-so-fabulous doors.