The best Love Island-style villas you can stay at in Spain, Portugal and Turkey from just £19pp a night
WITH Love Island back on our screens, who wouldn’t like to be sunbathing, partying and flirting in a fabulous villa in Majorca? But you don’t need chiselled abs and your face on TV to get a dream location. If you share with a group of family or friends out of peak season, you can have […]
WITH Love Island back on our screens, who wouldn’t like to be sunbathing, partying and flirting in a fabulous villa in Majorca?
But you don’t need chiselled abs and your face on TV to get a dream location.
If you share with a group of family or friends out of peak season, you can have for your very own Love Island villa in the sun – even on a budget.
Trisha Harbord digs out some scorching deals . . .
Croatia
YOU don’t see the Love Island contestants making their own dinner, so why should you?
For those with a “no cooking on holiday” rule, choose a villa near a good selection of bars and restaurants that won’t break the bank.
Super-modern Villa Labin Retreat is tucked away in Croatia’s lush Istrian forest, but close enough to the medieval market town of Labin, where you can find dishes for everyone, from seafood to pizza.
Extra appeal: It’s just 15 minutes from Kvarner Gulf, one of the most beautiful bays in Europe.
Go: Sleeps six. Seven nights’ self-catering costs from £949 (£158pp) between September 25 and October 15.
See jamesvillas.co.uk. Ryanair flies from Stansted to Pula from £45 return. See ryanair.com.
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Majorca
THE Love Island Majorcan villa is huge, but for a smaller and more intimate gathering, the four-person Sa Volta fits the bill.
The stone property still has lots of space, though, from the large mosaic-tiled pool to the seven seating areas in the gardens.
It’s in the quaint village of Selva, which has a gothic church housing artworks, cobbled streets and a market on Wednesdays.
Plus it’s just a 40-minute drive from the island’s capital Palma, with super shops, bars, restaurants and nightclubs for party animals.
Extra appeal: It sits beneath the Tramuntana Mountains, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Go: Sleeps four, seven nights’ self-catering costs from £1,049 (£262.25pp) arriving on September 30.
See jamesvillas.co.uk. EasyJet flies from Bristol to Palma for around £60 return. See easyjet.com.
Gran Canaria
IF you are in a group but also want your own space, then Villas de Tauro is a great choice.
The individual villas, each with a pool and garden, stand at the foot of a cliff on Gran Canaria’s La Playa Del Tauro resort.
The resort centres on a quiet beach and is close to the golden sands of Amadores.
Take a champagne cruise around the island or explore the hiking and biking trails. Cycle and car hire can be arranged.
Extra appeal: Anfi Tauro, a desert-like golf course, is close by.
Go: Sleeps six. Seven nights’ self-catering in a three-bedroom villa, with Birmingham flights and car hire, on September 18, costs from £739pp. For more information see jet2holidays.com.
Turkey
VILLA Aria on Turkey’s Lycian coast has real Love Island appeal.
An infinity pool, Jacuzzi and gym will keep those bodies in shape.
Then there are sun terraces for showing them off, al fresco dining for cocktails and six bedrooms for sleepovers.
Best of all, the views from Aria are astonishingly good, with spectacular sunsets that make a terrific background for photos.
If you tire of lazing about, Kalkan Beach Club is a great place for posing and Kalkan Old Town’s has lots of shops, cafes and restaurants.
Extra appeal: Fab hammam for massage and relaxation.
Go: Sleeps 11. Seven nights’ self-catering costs from £1,524 (£138.50pp) in October. See vintagetravel.co.uk.
Numerous airlines fly to Dalaman including easyJet with return fares from £185pp. See easyjet.com.
Florida
THE Florida coast is the perfect place for a proposal, with sugar-white sands, emerald green waters and breathtaking sunsets.
Enjoy all this, staying in a villa close to the beach on the beautiful Anna Maria Island.
Visit Anna Maria Bayfront Park for views of Tampa Bay and the four-mile Sunshine Skyway Bridge.
Go dolphin watching and parasailing above the Gulf of Mexico and shop at the market on Coquina Beach.
The pastel-coloured clapboard villas can be booked as a package.
Extra appeal: The private heated pool that’s flanked by palms.
Go: Sleeps six. Seven nights’ self-catering in a two-bedroom villa, including return BA flights from Gatwick to Tampa and van rental, costs from £1,065pp (£177.50) from mid-September to mid-October.
Kefalonia
EVERYONE falls in love with this Greek treasure island.
It has a stunning coastline with idyllic bays, medieval castles, traditional villages and sea caves.
Do as much as you like here. Just soak up the sun or go canoeing, horseback riding, sailing, walking and hiking.
Villa Elina stands in large grounds in Svoronata, overlooking the sea on the south west of the island.
It has a heated pool with Jacuzzi, terrace and al fresco dining area with a barbie.
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Extra appeal: A Greek American chef is available for hire – and there’s cookery lessons!
Go: Sleeps six. Seven nights’ self-catering in the three-bedroom villa costs from £1,322 (£220pp) in October. See splvillas.com.
British Airways flies from London to Kefalonia from around £200 return. See britishairways.com.