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1. Bucolic bliss in Corsica’s far southwest, France

It’s not just the sense of quiet that’ll make you swoon, it’s A Mandria di Murtoli’s rustic-luxe sense of style: ancient beams mixing with turquoise tiles, potted plants scattered across every terrace. This ten-room hotel, in Corsica’s remote and rural Ortolo valley, is part of an estate of villas, converted shepherd’s huts and restaurants, and when you’ve had your fill of lounging, a rich mix of mountains and sea awaits. In high summer it’s pretty Roccapina beach, nearby, that’s the big draw — set beneath a totemic Genoese watchtower.
Details B&B doubles from £281 (amandriadimurtoli.com). Fly to Figari

2. Family fun on the Ionian coast of Puglia, Italy

With giant pools, waterslides and an all-day kids’ club, the Vivosa Apulia Resort already has a lot going for it. But follow its boardwalk out through the wind-breaking pines and you’ll find the icing on the cake: sunset views from a soft, white-sand beach. For the most part, the pleasure of this low-rise and cosmopolitan resort comes from staying put and working the facilities hard — whether that’s the yoga studio, padel courts or high-ropes course. But if you can bear to drag yourselves away then Splash Waterpark, near the harbour town of Gallipoli, has even whizzier slides (lnx.splashparco.it).
Details A night’s all-inclusive in a family room from £404 (vivosaresort.com). Fly to Brindisi

3. House-party heaven in Poseidonia, Syros, Greece

On a hillside overlooking Foinikas Bay on the Cycladic island of Syros, Villa Poseidonia supplies all the ingredients you’ll need for a house party worthy of the Greek gods — including a 14m infinity pool, French windows in every bedroom and sunset views across the sea. Inside it’s all very civilised, decked out cleverly in understated colours such as sage and strawberry. But with a deeply shaded dining/lounge area on the terrace and boat hire and beaches beckoning in the bay this is an overwhelmingly outdoor venue, with the bustling island capital of Ermoupoli the obvious day trip. There’s a ferry to the island from Athens.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for 12 from £4,640. Fly to Athens

4. A luxury hotel on Ischia in the Bay of Naples, Italy

Settle into the five-star San Montano hotel and you’ll wonder why Ischia doesn’t have the same cachet as Capri. Sure, it’s a busy, populous island, within commuting distance of Naples. But staying here, up on the very top of the towering plug of volcanic rock, life is instantly more chic and cinematic. Occasionally, you’ll want to leave its terraced gardens and swimming pools and come back down to earth — to day-trip to Naples or Pompeii, or try the thermal baths at Negombo. But don’t plan too many jaunts. Otherwise you’ll miss having your mind blown by the clifftop sunsets.
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £2,798pp, including flights (kirkerholidays.com)

5. Boat trips and a villa in Brac, Croatia

The views from Villa Violet are straight across the sea, to the glitzy island of Hvar. Meanwhile, Croatia’s most famous beach — the shapely spit of shingle known as the Golden Horn ― is only two miles along the coast, with boat trips beckoning from Bol just beyond it. Here on Brac, the largest Dalmatian island, however, all is quiet; just a huddle of smartened-up village houses and an endless supply of little coves that hardly anyone visits. In the midst of it all, your three-bedroomed base is a small but perfectly formed mix of crisp interiors and a lovely pool terrace with a shaded barbecue area. So staying put is always an option.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for six from £2,608 (cvvillas.com). Fly to Split

6. Mountains and sea in the Languedoc, France

Perched on the forested Massif de la Clape, overlooking vineyards and shimmering saltwater lagoons, Château Capitoul offers a multifaceted slice of the Med. So take your pick from one of its classy castle bedrooms or a self-catering villa (complete with pools); and get set for a busy week that mixes bike rides with kite-flying on one of Languedoc’s never-ending beaches and a day trip to the soaring gothic cathedral at Narbonne. Meanwhile, back at base, two restaurants and a kids’ club will give parents the chance to put their feet up — or grab a game of tennis.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for four from £2,678 (chateaucapitoul.com). Fly to Carcassonne

• Discover our full guide to France

7. The sleepy Greek island of Alonissos

How can an island as pretty as Alonissos escape the hordes, you’ll wonder. After all, it’s only a two-hour ferry crossing from Skiathos. But pretty soon you’ll stop wondering and start exploring. Part of the Sporades, this forested island is rich in shipwrecks and sea creatures (on account of its marine national park), and lends itself to kayaking, hiking, snorkelling and boat tripping — with the cute, one-bedroom Villa Tassoula a handy crash pad in between. There’s even a hip little high-season beach scene nearby at Leftos Gialos.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for two from £1,209pp, including flights and hire car (ionianislandholidays.com)

8. Island-hopping through Italy’s up-and-coming Aeolian archipelago

Lots of people have heard of the volcanic island of Stromboli, off Sicily’s north coast. But fewer can tell you it’s part of an archipelago that’s by turns rugged, dramatic and — increasingly — chic. Fast, no-nonsense hydrofoils make island-hopping easy, with Lipari, Vulcano and Panarea all vying for your attention. But wherever you wander, make the lush and lovely little island of Salina your main base. On its north coast, Principe di Salina is in a dream setting. A cute and sociable boutique hotel with airy white rooms and sleek white four-poster day beds around the pool, it serves killer cocktails and communal dinners. It’s also handy for walks to the gobsmacking, sea-to-sky mountain at Pollara.
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £1,490pp, including flights, transfers and ferries (realholidays.co.uk)

9. Get active in Phokaia, Anatolia, Turkey

Just because you’re going on holiday, that doesn’t mean you have to switch yourself off — and if you’re a restless, sporty soul, the Phokaia Beach Resort, north of Izmir, will be your kind of bliss. Every day you’ll wake up to a mouthwatering tick-list: on land it includes tennis, pickleball, yoga, cycling tours, beach volleyball and swimming, while in its sheltered bay qualified instructors and consistent winds make dinghy-sailing and windsurfing a breeze. Outdoorsy children (as well as their parents) will love the kids’ and teen clubs too.
Details Seven nights’ half-board from £956pp, including flights (markwarner.co.uk)

10. Coves and a hip hotel on Catalonia’s Costa Brava, Spain

Everyone applauded when Finca Victoria opened on the Costa Brava last year. Style-conscious but not snooty, this new adults-only member of the Design Hotels collection puts the little beach at Sa Riera very nearly on your doorstep and serves up a menu of local seafood at its AlKostat Del Mar restaurant. From here, coastal hikes along the clifftop Cami de Ronda footpath are the obvious next step, to seek out the small but perfectly formed cove at Cala Sa Tuna. Then, when you’ve had your fill of sea swimming, it’s time to head inland. A heady day of history awaits in Girona’s tight medieval core.
Details Room-only doubles from £191 (designhotels.com). Fly to Girona or Barcelona

11. A slick villa in Noto, Sicily, Italy

One of the Thinking Traveller’s collection of 84 stellar Sicilian villas, Belladonna is all about eye-catching architectural lines, sprays of bougainvillea and the splashy joy of proper swimming, courtesy of its dramatic 20m pool. The location is a bit of a head-turner too. Set amid olive groves in Sicily’s southeastern corner, it’s close to the wild beaches of the Vendicari nature reserve as well as the baroque town of Noto and gorgeous, historic Syracuse. So you won’t be spending all your time lounging about on the villa’s giant terraces, pretending you’re on a fashion shoot.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for six from £5,947 (thethinkingtraveller.com). Fly to Catania

• 26 of the best things to do in Sicily on your next Italian break

12. A modernist seaside hotel in St Raphael, Côte d’Azur, France

It’s not often, on the Côte d’Azur, that you get to stay right on the water’s edge. But at the recently revamped Roches Rouges hotel, the Med is so immediate and inescapable you’ll feel as though you’ve joined a colony of seabirds, clinging to the side of a cliff. Whitewashed rooms, unfussy contemporary furniture and the eternal churn and slap of the waves below add to its elemental atmosphere, and you can deepen the sense of connection by walking out onto the raw rose-coloured crags of Cap Dromont nearby. It’s wilder than you ever imagined the Riviera could be.
Details B&B doubles from £373 (beaumier.com). Fly or take the train to Nice

13. Walking in the Cyclades, Greece

This is a holiday that’s perfect for May — when the sun is balmy rather than blazing and sprays of wildflowers add colour to every scene. Over the course of eight guided days you’ll explore three of the most eye-catching islands of the Cyclades on a series of gentle walks and tastings in a small group, with nights in cute, boutiquey hotels. Quiet Tinos is decorated with dovecotes and home to a vibrant community of cheese, honey and cured pork producers. On Naxos you’ll try the island’s wine and enjoy a day’s sailing, while spectacular Santorini is the place for a crater-rim hike and a sunset cruise. This is one of G Adventures’ more luxurious trips, with hiking an average difficulty rating and ferries between the islands included.
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £3,199, including guiding and ferries (gadventures.com). Fly into Athens and out from Santorini

14. An elegant island hotel on Losinj, Croatia

Amidst the pine trees of Losinj, a Croatian island southeast of Istria, the Boutique Hotel Alhambra has created a little enclave of serenity right by the water’s edge, with restored Habsburg villas as its neighbours and a Michelin star for one of its restaurants. Its sundecks jut out over the water and it has an impressive wine cellar of more than 500 bottles. The style is sleek and urban; the setting anything but — as Losinj’s northern spine of mountains gives way to an intriguing, endlessly indented coastline of little coves, uninhabited islands and the pretty harbour at Mali Losinj. Pack your snorkelling gear and walking boots as well as your glad rags.
Details B&B doubles from £360 (losinj-hotels.com). Fly to Pula

15. A laid-back beach resort in glamorous Hyères, Côte d’Azur, France

Once upon a time Le Hameau des Pesquiers hummed with industry, as its workers processed the salt from the lagoon next door. Now it’s a laid-back but luxey hotel. Freestanding bathtubs and ornately framed mirrors decorate the bedrooms in the white mansion, some with hot tubs on their terrace outside, and the only pursuit is pleasure as guests waft between beach, bar and flame-grilled meals at the Saliniers restaurant. Southwards, the island of Poquerolles awaits your day-tripping pleasure; so too the chic town of Hyères. But with nearly half a mile of tree-fringed seafront on your own doorstep you might not hear its siren call.
Details B&B doubles from £268. Fly or take the train to Toulon or Marseille

16. An action-packed resort in Cagliari, Sardinia

It’s not as if the Forte Village near Pula and Calgiari needs any new activities. With academies aimed at everyone from budding rugby players to DJs and scientists (one day starts from £87pp), as well as go-karting, padel courts, bowling, a nature park and a Children’s Wonderland of pools and activities, it’s already the Mediterranean capital of busy family holidays. But this year it has also added a zip wire and a star-gazing observatory. Meanwhile, parents can join in the fun with their own sporting activities or sneak away to the beach or the vast Acquaforte spa, before everyone gets back to base at the on-site Hotel Bouganville for a debrief.
Details Seven nights’ half-board from £807pp, including flights and kids’ clubs

17. A rustic-chic retreat for four on Cephalonia, Greece

For all its apparent simplicity, the two-bedroomed Butterfly House is a peach. Yes, its proportions are modest. Yes, its knobbly walls look a bit rough. But there’s nothing half-baked about its smooth and sprawling terrace, or its infinity pool, or the coordinated, eye-catching splashes of colour that lead your eye through the airy interiors. Hours of shaded lounging await, deafened by cicadas, followed by waterfront suppers in Fiscardo’s tavernas. Cephalonia’s prettiest harbour village is only eight minutes’ drive away.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for four from £3,495 (scottwilliams.co.uk). Fly to Cephalonia

18. A Parador stay in arty Malaga, Andalucia, Spain

For most Med lovers, Malaga is just an airport. But burrow deep into this seafront city and you’ll find not just art galleries, a cathedral and an intriguing warren of historic streets but an affordable Parador hotel sitting beside its castle. The Parador de Malaga Gibralfaro will win no prizes for interior design, but it’s a cool, calm and spacious place, with a spectacular rooftop pool overlooking the harbour. Meanwhile, down below, the city’s well-kept urban beach beckons, as does the magnificent Picasso Museum.
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £905pp, including flights

19. Flotilla sailing in the Ionian islands of Greece

“How could you possibly improve on this?” you’ll ask yourself the first time you turn your sun-starved British eyes from the west-coast town of Palairos — and gaze towards the Ionian islands of Greece. Well, here’s one way to make it better. Book a one-week skippered flotilla holiday at Neilson’s Vounaki beach club next door. Bring three to five shipmates to complete your yacht’s crew and each day you’ll help your experienced Neilson skipper as you sail between the islands as part of a small fleet, and become part of that mesmerising view. No previous yachting experience is necessary.
Details Seven nights’ cabin-only accommodation for four starts from £950pp, including flights (neilson.co.uk)

20. A cool villa for four in Kalkan, Turkey

The view from Tepe Ev’s terrace is worthy of a Bond villain’s lair. Up there, slouched beside your contemporary two-bedroom villa, you can cast an all-conquering eye over Kalkan’s concertinaed Mediterranean coast in Antalya province and hatch your holiday plans. Booking a boat trip from the harbour so you can spend the day diving off the stern, for example, or driving to the ruins of ancient Patara and its ruler-straight beach. With such far-reaching panoramas, just about anything seems possible, including a starlit supper on the terrace, toasting your decision to can all those plans and stay in for the day.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for four from £1,116pp, including flights and car hire

• 16 of the best places to visit in Turkey

21. 7Pines resort on west-coast Ibiza

If you want a taste of Ibiza’s style rather than its party scene, the west coast 7Pines resort is where to come. Here, on a low sea-sculpted cliff in the Cap des Bou area, the sense of quiet is deepened by the resort’s broad and spacious spread. Accommodation comes courtesy of a range of villas, whitewashed cottage suites and poolside rooms, while the glass-walled infinity pool is its natural hub. Expect sunset DJ sets, a wide choice of restaurants and a sumptuous spa — and don’t be shy if you have little ones in tow, it has its own kids’ club.
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £1,379pp, including flights (inspiringtravel.co.uk)

22. Club Med in Palmiye, Antalya, Turkey

Club Med’s definition of luxury is different from most. It’s not about piling up fluffy pillows but clearing away obstacles, so that its guests can make the most of their surroundings. At its newly refurbished Palmiye resort that means three things: a constant supply of buffet meals and in-between snacking, a smorgasbord of free activities, including yoga, sailing, padel and a trapeze-artist school and — at extra cost — a range of excursions that will give you a taste of Lycia’s landscape and history. That includes one of the world’s finest Roman ruins: the all-but-intact theatre at Aspendos.
Details Seven nights’ all-inclusive from £1,711pp, including flights

23. A chilled hotel on Formentera, Spain

If your playlist is trending towards Joni Mitchell and the only shoes you want to wear are flip-flops, then let Formentera be your goal. Mitchell penned some of her album Blue here, and the low-slung Balearic island, south of Ibiza, still has a hippy heart — as well as a girdle of sand and a sprinkle of whitewashed villages. Aim for the unfussy Dunas de Formentera hotel on its southeastern coast. There’s no spa here and the rooms are almost monastic in their simplicity, so pack a bag full of novels. Or maybe start writing one yourself.
Details B&B doubles from £353 a night (dunasdeformentera.com). Fly to Ibiza

24. A luxury hotel in Kalamata, Greece

The world is waking up to Kalamata’s appeal. Set on a yawning, south-facing bay, beneath the Taygetos Mountains of Messinia, this smart little city and its rural hinterland are home to famous and intensely flavoured black olives, a bustling harbour scene and some eye-catching beachfront hotels — notably the Grecotel Filoxenia Kalamata, which had a top-to-bottom refurb last year. Here old-school grandeur combines with palm tree gardens and giant swimming pools, with a kids’ club and plenty of olive-based treatments in the spa to keep the parents happy. Day trips into the city or over the mountains to the ruined Byzantine town of Mystras deepen the appeal.
Details Seven nights’ half-board from £1,159pp, including flights (sovereign.com)

25. Stay at the Anassa near Paphos, Cyprus

Lay aside any prejudice you may have of cheek-by-jowl hotels crowding the Cypriot coastline. Anassa is a place apart. Set near the island’s western tip, by the Akama National Forest Park, it makes full use of its 20-acre plot, scattering swimming pools, villas and restaurants through its gardens as it ambles down towards a limestone promontory and its sandy beach. According to legend, the goddess Aphrodite used to bathe in a spring nearby. Engulfed in Anassa’s elegance, and rubbing shoulders with the odd celeb, you might end the week feeling a little immortal yourself.
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £2,420pp, including flights (elegantresorts.co.uk)

Have you booked your summer holiday yet? Share your plans in the comments