VILLA HOLIDAY CHECKLIST

I always feel a little nervous when first arriving at a villa. You can never quite tell from the photos or the reviews what it’s going to be like. Will the beds be bearable? Is it going to be full of the owner’s clutter? Is there something spoiling the view, which the photographs cleverly edited out?

And getting it right really matters – more so perhaps than a hotel room, because you tend to spend more time in a villa, where the living spaces and garden matter as much as the bedrooms. So how do you mitigate the risks and make sure you have the best chance of finding the perfect villa for you? Here is our seven-point checklist.

OPERATOR/AGENT OR PRIVATE BOOKING? On this page we have focused on tour operators and agents which offer villas – either as rentalonly bookings (see below) or as part of a package with flights, or car hire. The advantage of booking this way is that the company acts as a filter, setting its own standards and – hopefully – monitoring them.

If you have very specific needs or questions, you can even ask to speak to a member of staff who has actually visited the property. You also have much more legal comeback if there are problems with the villa or the description. The alternative is to use sites such as airbnb.co.uk and vrbo.com, which offer a way of booking directly with owners and also list users’ reviews. To avoid scams, be sure to follow the site’s booking and payment instructions to the letter and always pay through the site’s payment scheme, whatever the apparent owner may say.

BE VERY CLEAR ABOUT THE LOCATION OF THE PROPERTY. How close are adjacent houses, roads and the owner’s accommodation? How near is the nearest shop? How big is the garden – and is it arranged around the villa, or a separate enclosure some way away?

IF A POOL IS INCLUDED, CHECK ITS MEASUREMENTS. Website pictures can be misleading and it’s amazing how something just a few metres long can be made to look like an Olympic swimming pool.

IF YOU ARE TRAVELLING WITH CHILDREN, don’t automatically assume that the property will have been thoroughly checked for safety. Even obvious points such as fencing and gating a swimming pool may not have been properly attended to, and there are other hazards to watch out for, depending on the age of your children, such as terraces with steep drops, marble or stone stairs perhaps with no rails, unfenced gardens and so on. And if you have a baby, there is no guarantee that a cot or high chair will be either suitable or safe for a child of that age.

IF THE SERVICE IS OFFERED, it is nearly always worth booking a “welcome hamper”. The chances are you will arrive at the villa after the local shops have shut on a Saturday evening and you may not be able to buy much on a Sunday either.

BE CAREFUL WHEN COMPARING PRICES. Different operators and agents use different systems and formulas. You may be quoted per villa per week excluding travel arrangements and car hire; per villa per week including a hire car, but not travel arrangements; or per person per week including flights and hire car.

The only way to be sure which is the best deal is to look at the bottom line – the total cost of the holiday for everyone. In particular, watch out for extras, which may be payable on arrival or departure: electricity and gas, pool heating, cleaning bills and local taxes. And check you are happy with any terms for paying and reclaiming damage deposits.

REMEMBER, AGENTS THAT OFFER ONLY VILLA RENTALS and no other services, such as car hire or flights, do not legally have to protect your money. Before booking, check to see if they are bonded or have other financial protection. Otherwise, paying with a credit card ensures you won’t lose money if the agent goes out of business before your holiday. Paying by bank transfer to a private owner will leave you with little or no protection.

Villa pictures can be deceiving