Los Caños de Meca, Cádiz, Spain
Wild, windswept and wonderfully unspoilt, the Costa de la Luz is the Spanish coastline time forgot; a great swathe of Atlantic drama, fringed with sandy beaches and small seaside villages and resorts. Hotel Madreselva, surrounded by the pine forest, wetlands, dunes and sea cliffs of the Breña y Marismas de Barbate nature reserve, makes a suitably tranquil base, with a palm-shaded courtyard, flame-walled pool area and 18 stylish rooms, all with a private patio. A minute’s walk from the beach at Los Caños de Meca, the hotel is perfect for watersports lovers, as well as exploring this unspoilt corner of Andalucia. The hilltop pueblo blanco of Vejer, a 20-minute drive away, has charm in spades, while Cape Trafalgar, a lighthouse with views over the Strait of Gibraltar, is 10 minutes’ walk along the beach.
Doubles from £83 B&B, hotelmadreselva.com
Sagres, Algarve, Portugal
The views are the main draw at Memmo Baleeira, a modernist hotel on the Algarve’s south-westernmost tip. With the beach just a few steps away and infinite skies, there is a genuine sense of holidaying at the edge of the world. Sagres is steeped in history – it was the gateway to the unknown world during Portugal’s Age of Sail and has a spectacular windswept fortress, dramatic cliffside scenery and a chilled-out, surfy vibe. A member of Design Hotels, Memmo Baleeira has rooms in crisp shades of cream, shell and taupe. The restaurant serves fish and seafood straight off local boats and there’s a large lawned area around the pool that is ideal for kids. Down at the harbour, boat trips head out each day to spot pods of dolphins, and the long-distance Rota Vicentina (Fishermen’s Trail) runs through the town, offering fabulous hiking.
Doubles from £105 B&B, memmohotels.com
Pelion, Thessaly, Greece
The gloriously unspoilt Pelion peninsula is home to little more than holiday villas owned by wealthy Athenians, and small, family-run hotels. The Pounda Paou is one, set on a hillside above the sea, with rooms linked by shady paths and leafy sitting areas, and a pool terrace with glorious sea views. A car is essential (the nearest village, Argalasti is a few minutes’ drive away); half the fun of a visit to Pelion is following the quiet country roads to hilltop villages with excellent tavernas, or small coves with barely anyone else there. The village of Chorto, around 15 minutes’ drive (or a two-mile hike), has a good selection of tavernas, although dinners at Pounda Paou – home-cooked, hearty dishes including slow-cooked meats, vegetable stews and handmade pastries – are not to be missed.
From £399pp a week B&B, ionianislandholidays.com
Elounda, Crete
Elounda’s transition from sleepy fishing village to five-star haven has been one of the biggest changes on Crete, but in spite of numerous glitzy hotels, the area remains extraordinarily beautiful. The village is a patchwork of tavernas and stone houses clustered behind a harbour that opens on to the vivid blue lagoon that separates the mainland from Spinalonga island. The opening of the new Innside Elounda on 1 May means this gorgeous slice of Cretan coastline will now be affordable (once again) for mere mortals. It will have chic, comfortable rooms stepping down the hillside (most with sparkling sea views), two restaurants, outdoor yoga classes and works by local artisans dotted around the communal spaces. And it is perfectly placed for exploring some of Crete’s ancient sites, including Knossos.
Doubles from £92 room-only, melia.com
Tučepi, Dalmatian coast, Croatia
In between Croatia’s glittering islands and big draws such as Dubrovnik and Split, the Makarska Riviera stays happily under the radar – a long stretch of coast fringed with quiet beaches, pine forest and small resorts that attract far fewer crowds than their glitzier siblings. Tučepi is one of them, with traditional stone houses and a handful of hotels scattered along a stretch of pebbly beach, with a palm-lined promenade edged with seafood restaurants and traditional konobas (taverns). Villa Andrea opens out directly on to the prom, with 18 comfortable, unfussy rooms (it’s worth upgrading from a classic to a standard room for £17.50 a night). There are wine tastings in the cellar and friendly staff who can arrange everything from restaurant reservations to white-water rafting on the Cetina River. For a little more life, the larger resort of Makarska is just 10 minutes’ drive away.
Doubles from £94.50 B&B, villa-andrea.info
Near Essaouira, Morocco
Sometimes the best kind of beach holiday is to be away from everything, but with somewhere lovely to pop to for an afternoon’s shopping or a spot of dinner. Kasbah d’Eau, a striking, contemporary hotel, softened with vibrant Moroccan textiles, tiles and hand-carved woodwork, is on a stretch of unspoilt beach 25 minutes’ drive from the buzzy seaside town of Essaouira. Cooking classes, horse-riding and quad-biking are all on offer, along with visits to Essaouira’s picturesque medina, with its art galleries, cafes and stalls selling everything from Berber rugs to leather goods. Haggling is still expected, but it’s less of a competitive sport than elsewhere, while the town’s rooftop bars are ideal for sundowners. Back at base, the restaurant serves local dishes – grilled chicken, garlicky prawns, lamb tagine – with aplomb.
Doubles from £122 B&B, kasbahdeau.com
Salento, Puglia, Italy
The Maldives in Italy? It might sound like an exaggeration, but the white-sand beaches and glassily clear seas that roll out along the protected coastline of the Litorale di Ugento natural park really do have that desert island feel. A short stroll from the beach, Masseria Fontanelle is a restored 17th-century convent that oozes tranquillity (not least because of its 12-plus age policy), with cool, cocoon-like bedrooms that have whitewashed walls and stone floors. The underground cavern spa offers restorative treatments, and on summer evenings there’s outdoor cinema, with classic Puglian dishes in the restaurant terrace and a gin bar to explore. The beachfront village of Torre San Giovanni has a clutch of trattorias, while the nearby town of Ugento boasts stunning baroque architecture and a historic centre that’s easily explored on foot.
Doubles from £122 B&B, masseriafontanelle.it
Panarea, Aeolian Islands, Italy
A house for two, tucked away on an island that’s car-free and crowd-free, with a nightly light show from Stromboli, rumbling away in the distance … what could be more blissful? A Picciridda is the cherry-pick of the clutch of small rental properties on Panarea, the smallest of the seven inhabited Aeolian Islands, off the north coast of Sicily. It is a blue and white cocoon for two, perched on a hillside, close to the picturesque village of San Pietro. Like all of Italy, it gets busy in August, but the average day here is a mix of gentle hikes through olive groves, lazy hours on quiet coves and long lunches in waterfront restaurants, while evenings are for suppers on A Picciridda’s lovely private terrace – with fresh fish bought from the harbour.
From £1,005 a week self-catering, sawdays.co.uk
All prices are for May/June and were correct at the time of going to press
