The Daily Telegraph - Saturday - Travel
BEST FOR AFFORDABLE, COUNTRYWIDE CHOICE
This company has the largest selection, with more than 600 properties. Most are concentrated in Tuscany, Puglia and Sicily, but there are also mid-sized villas in the Liguria and Veneto regions. New on the books is Piedmont, where villas are centred in the Langhe winelands. Top pick: Villa Meraviglia, sleeping eight, has a pool on the shores of Lake Maggiore in Lombardy. From £6,128 including welcome hamper on arrival.
CV VILLAS
(cvvillas.com)
Strong on characterful family-sized properties in sought-after locations, CV has 200-plus villas located across Tuscany, Puglia, Sicily, Umbria and Lazio, Campania and the Amalfi Coast.
Top pick: Il Palazzeddu, sleeping six, is a farmhouse with a cottage garden on Sardinia’s north-east tip. From £2,828.
ILIOS TRAVEL
(iliostravel.com)
This small, specialist company has been around since the late 1970s and has built up a collection of around 100 villas.
Although central Italy and regions of Tuscany, Umbria and Marche remain the focus, the portfolio is also strong in Puglia, Sicily and Sardinia.
Top pick: Poggio della Fornace, sleeping eight, with a fenced pool near Orvieto in Umbria, is a good choice for families with children. From £1,895.
JAMES VILLAS
( jamesvillas.co.uk)
Erring towards purpose-built villas rather than older converted farmhouses, the portfolio of some 100 properties is strong on affordable family-sized places, many with tennis courts and pools, in less visited corners. Top pick: Villa Luisa, sleeps eight, is a modern villa suiting active families in
Le Marche with a pool and floodlit tennis court. From £3,336.
VINTAGE TRAVEL
(vintagetravel.co.uk)
This long-standing Mediterraneanwide specialist has built up a small selection of more than 20 competitively priced villas in Italy, located mainly in Tuscany, Umbria and Lazio, plus five near Cefalu. All have private pools and offer from one to six bedrooms.
Top pick: La Gioia, sleeping six, is a one-storey villa built of local “tufa” with travertine terraces overlooking Lake Bolsena in Lazio. From £1,068.
LANDMARK TRUST
(landmarktrust.org.uk)
You won’t find pools, but you will find plenty of atmosphere and outstanding architecture at the Landmark’s selection of six standout properties. Smallest are two apartments sleeping four in a Renaissance villa near Padua, while a 16th-century Palladian Villa in Vicenza sleeps 16 (see villas for groups, right). Top pick: Sant’Antonio, sleeping 12, is a former monastery in terraced gardens near Rome, with ancient walls dating back to 60BC. From £646 for a threenight weekend.
Overseas holidays are currently subject to restrictions. See page 3.