Twenty ways to fly and flop in style

BUDGET BOLTHOLES

The beauty of Paxos is that there is almost nothing to do; the pace of life is somnambulant, the blessed lack of an airport saving this tiniest Ionian island from crowds and bustle, and preserving its old-fashioned air. It has sandy beaches on the east coast; the west is all rugged drama, hillsides blooming purple with wildflowers in springtime. Simpson Travel has three excellentvalue adults-only hotels, including Bay View with its standalone suites and terraces shrouded in olive trees.

A week’s holiday at Bay View in May costs from £727 per person, including B&B, flights from UK airports to

Corfu, transfers with Simpson Travel (020 3797 1851; simpsontravel.com)

THE ALGARVE, BUT NOT

AS YOU KNOW IT

With the best climate in mainland Europe and a summer stretching from May to October, the Algarve is a wellestablished fly-and-flop destination, with no shortage of cheap-and-cheerful options. Most are also large-andunlovely, but away from the concrete monoliths are plenty of interesting, affordable digs. Try Casa Brava, a three-suite eco B&B (suites from £74; casabrava.pt); Companhia das Culturas, a huddle of beautifully restored farm buildings with a spa (doubles from £87; companhiadasculturas. com); or Memmo Baleeira, a surf-vibe lodge on Portugal’s southwestern tip, where a path leads down to the beach. A week’s holiday for two at Memmo Baleeira, flying from Stansted to Faro on May 8, costs from £429 per person including B&B and flights (excluding transfers), with Thomas Cook (020 8016 3295; thomascook.com)

CRETE EXPECTATIONS

In the birthplace of the gods, the most heavenly resorts tend to be found around the spiffed-up fishing village of

Elounda and its eponymous bay on the north coast. So a fancy newcomer in Crete’s quiet south makes a splendid alternative for those wanting to explore a different side of the island. Numo Ierapetra Beach Resort is stylish, for adults only, with a sleek pool bar and beachfront restaurant serving Cretan-Mediterranean dishes. Given the pizzazz, it’s astoundingly good value.

Turquoise Holidays offers a week’s holiday at Numo Ierapetra from £975 per person, B&B, including flights and transfers, departing May 23 (01494 678400; turquoiseholidays.co.uk)

CHIC AND CHEAP

ISLAND ESCAPE

Sitting prettily off the Atlantic coast, the Ile de Ré is France’s most idyllic holiday island. That’s a secret long out (even the Aga Khan would struggle to bag a villa in August), so a hotel that’s both cute and affordable on this island is a precious find indeed. Hôtel Le Sénéchal is designed to welcome people on all different budgets, with a wide range of rooms, suites and lofts in its collection of green and blue-shuttered houses in Ars-en-Ré – in plum position for the island’s best and wildest sandy beaches, via country lanes lined with hollyhocks. Doubles from £79 a night in May, room-only (00 335 4629 4042; hotel-le-senechal.com)

i ‘The pace of life is somnambulant’: the tiny island of Paxos has an old-fashioned air