Places to stay

A five-star resort on the edge of Naousa built around garden courtyards, a seasonal pool and a full spa card, with the town's harbour restaurants close enough to walk to and far enough to sleep past.

A small whitewashed hotel in Naousa's Agioi Anargyroi quarter with gardens, terraces and a hot tub, close to the fishing harbour without sitting in its evening noise.

Simple self-catering studios with a garden and bar on Parikia's main street — the honest Cycladic baseline: a clean room, a shaded table, and the port and evening volta within a few minutes on foot.

A five-star spa hotel terraced above Vietri sul Mare at the coast road's eastern gate, with a sea-view pool, a full wellness floor and the ceramics town at its feet. The composed, grown-up end of the coast rather than the crowded middle.

A polished boutique stay a few steps above Amalfi's harbourfront, trading pool acreage for position: the passeggiata, the cathedral steps and the ferry quay are all a short walk downhill.

A family-run hotel in hillside Scala, across the valley from Ravello, with a garden, a terrace and free parking, which is scarce on this coast. What it asks in hairpin bends it returns in quiet and in views.

A palace hotel on the Haldenstrasse quay, restored and reopened, facing the lake with the mountains behind it. There is a spa, a garden and a terrace on the water side.

A hotel on Pfistergasse inside the old town, with a sauna and a small seasonal pool. The covered bridges and the quay are a few streets away.

A plain, cheerful place on Loewengraben in the middle of the old town, with a restaurant, a garden and a games room. Rooms are basic and the position is the point.

A resort on the water at Cala Granu, north of Porto Cervo, with a private beach area, a spa carrying a hammam and steam room, and pools indoors and out. Low granite buildings turned towards the sea, in the coast's own idiom.

A boutique hotel a short way inland from Porto Cervo, with a spa and treatment rooms, a pool and pool bar, a tennis court and a desk that arranges the water sports. Near enough to the marina for dinner, far enough off it to be quiet.

A modest hotel at Cala di Volpe with a seasonal pool, a garden and parking, sitting in the middle of an expensive stretch of this coast. What it buys is the position and the beaches rather than the frontage.

A five-star hotel on the Elounda waterfront with a private beach area, a saltwater pool, mature gardens and a full spa card. Beachfront and self-contained, with tennis and water sports on site and the village along the shore.

An adults-only hotel on the slope above Elounda, with a pool set to the gulf view, gardens, a restaurant and a bar. Height buys the outlook here, and the walk down into the village is shorter than the walk back up.

Self-catering studios and apartments set around a garden and a seasonal pool, a short walk from Elounda's harbour front. Simple, with a pool bar and the water at the end of the lane.

A five-star house on a small square directly behind the Pantheon, with a spa and a terrace over the old centre. The scarce thing in Rome is position, and this has it.

A grand old hotel on the Corso, with a sun terrace above the traffic and public rooms that have kept their character rather than been modernised out of it. The mid-range pick in a centre where the ceiling is five-star throughout.

Air-conditioned rooms on a lane between Piazza Navona and the Pantheon, with a lift, a concierge desk and an early check-in option. No pool, no terrace and no view; what it buys is the old centre on foot from the door.

A hotel on Cesta Svobode where the lake path runs, with an indoor pool, a spa and a terrace.

A house on Zagoriska turned into rooms, with a restaurant downstairs and parking at the door. It sits back from the lake rather than on it.

A family garni on Pod Strazo with a garden, a sun terrace and its own parking. Breakfast and a bed, close to the lake path, and nothing else.

A rebuilt house on Via Serlas, with an indoor pool, a spa, a hammam and a terrace.

A hotel on Via Traunter Plazzas in the middle of the village, with an indoor pool, a sauna, a spa and several restaurants under one roof.

A hotel on Via Crasta on the Bad side of the valley, with a restaurant, a bar, ski storage and the snow reaching the door in season.

A four-star hotel set into the cliff on the road above the beach, with a spa and wellness centre, a restaurant and terraces looking straight down the coast. The position is the product here: the water is below the rooms rather than across a road from them.

A three-star hotel on the main road threading down through the town, with a hot tub, a bar and a tour desk, and the beach reachable on foot down the stepped lanes. The practical middle of Positano: central, serviced, and without the cliff-edge premium.

A two-star pensione above the quieter of the town beaches, plain rooms and a sun terrace, run as a guest house rather than a hotel. The honest Positano baseline, and it leaves budget for the boat.

A hotel south of the old town with pools indoors and out, a spa with a hammam, and a garden. There is a restaurant, a club for children and a shuttle for an extra charge.

A resort hotel on the northern side of Lagos with pools open all year, a spa, a hot tub and free parking. The old town and the marina are a walk from the door.

A plain hotel on a street in the middle of Lagos, with a terrace, a lift and a tour desk. The old town, the marina and the town beaches are all on foot from here.

A hotel beside the casino on Place du Casino, with rooms looking over the square, the town or the sea, a spa and several restaurants.

A hotel on Avenue Kennedy looking over Port Hercule and the harbour-front stretch of the Grand Prix circuit.

A hotel in Fontvieille beside the Princess Grace Rose Garden, with rooms facing the sea or the garden, a restaurant and a heated outdoor pool that opens in season.

Suites inside the walled town, adults only, with a garden and a pool.

A four-star boutique hotel outside the walls and close to the water, with a pool and parking of its own. It trades the atmosphere of the old town for a pool and parking.

A small hotel on a lane inside the medieval town, with a garden, a terrace and its own parking. The entry tier here still sleeps inside the walls.

A hotel in the Santa Cruz quarter with a rooftop pool and terrace, a spa and a hammam. The cathedral and the Alcázar are both a short walk.

A hotel on calle San José with a rooftop pool, a pool bar and a restaurant. The lanes of Santa Cruz start at the door and the Alcázar is a few minutes away.

Rooms on calle Santiago in the old town, with a roof terrace, a lift and a desk staffed around the clock. Everything in the centre is walkable from here.

A country hotel with villas on the road from Sant Rafel to Santa Agnès, with a saltwater pool, a spa and a restaurant; yoga classes and massages can be booked on site.

An agroturismo in the countryside at Venda de Xarraca, near Sant Joan de Labritja in the north of the island, with a saltwater pool, a restaurant and bar, and gardens.

Rooms on Sa Carrosa, inside the walls of Dalt Vila, the old town of Ibiza, with a restaurant and a garden terrace.

A five-star hotel in the centre of the old town, with terraced gardens, an infinity pool and a spa. The position puts the theatre, the main street and the view over the strait all within a short walk.

A five-star hotel on the ring road above the centre, with an outdoor pool looking over the coast, a spa and a fitness suite. The mid-range pick in a town where the ceiling is five-star throughout.

A three-star hotel in the centre with a garden, a sun terrace and a restaurant, a few minutes on foot from the main street. Entry level here buys the walkable town rather than a room by the water.

A five-star design-led resort stepped above a beach on the island's south-east coast, with a saltwater infinity pool over the bay, a spa and fitness suite, and a private beach area below the terraces.

A four-star hotel on the edge of Mykonos Town with a pool looking out over the rooftops, a garden terrace and a pool bar, plus a complimentary airport shuttle — the town within reach, its noise not.

An adults-only guesthouse in a traditional Cycladic house in Mykonos Town, with a garden, a seasonal pool and a sun terrace looking over the roofs — entry level here buys a position in the Chora rather than a beach.

A grand house on a wide avenue between the Arc de Triomphe and the river, with a spa carrying a hammam and a steam room, a heated indoor pool, and a roof terrace over the city. Position is most of what it sells: much of the western centre is walkable from the door.

A five-star house on a quiet Saint-Germain street a short walk from the river, with a heated indoor pool, a sauna and a spa. Saint-Germain as an address without the palace-hotel bill, and the left-bank galleries at the end of the road.

A plain, soundproofed, air-conditioned hotel on a narrow Latin Quarter lane, a few steps from the river and the island. No view and no spa; what it buys is a central address and a bed you can sleep in.

A hotel on the Promenade des Anglais with its own beach across the road and a heated indoor pool. There is a spa, a restaurant and valet parking.

A hotel on rue de l'Hôtel des Postes, between the old town and the shopping streets, with a restaurant, a bar and a sun terrace. The desk is staffed around the clock.

A plain hotel on rue de Belgique in the streets behind the station, with soundproofed rooms and a lift. The desk is staffed around the clock.

Hotel rooms and villas on the waterfront at Dobrota, along the bay north of Kotor's walled old town, with a spa, a private beach area and a seasonal outdoor pool.

A hotel on Trg od Oružja, the square just inside the old town's main gate, with a restaurant, a bar, room service and a sauna and hammam.

Rooms on Marovina, a short walk north of Kotor's walled old town, with a shared kitchen and a terrace.

A hotel on the Croisette with a private beach across the road and a heated pool that stays open through the year. The spa, the restaurants and the fitness room are all inside.

A hotel set in a garden at the Pointe Croisette end of the bay, with a heated outdoor pool, a tennis court and a sun terrace. The beaches at that end of town are a short walk away.

A hotel in a garden on the western side of Cannes, with a seasonal outdoor pool and parking on site. An airport shuttle runs for an extra charge and the seafront is a short drive along the coast road.

A grand hotel of the old school at the tip of the Bellagio headland, with gardens running down to its own stretch of shore. There is a private beach, indoor and outdoor pools and a spa, and the ferry pier is a short walk from the door.

A small villa hotel on the Tremezzo shore, with a garden, a pool looking across to Bellagio and steps down to the water. It buys the western-shore position without the bill the grand hotels along the same road carry.

A plain village hotel at Argegno, where the ferry calls and the road up the Intelvi valley begins. Rooms are simple and the terrace and the restaurant face the water.

A hotel of Moorish-revival design on the hill below the Alhambra, with a terrace looking over the rooftops of the city to the Sierra Nevada. The palace entrance is a walk up through the woods.

A hotel on the Paseo de la Sabica, the road that climbs to the Alhambra ticket office, with a seasonal pool and a garden. It puts the monument within walking distance and the centre within a short bus ride.

A restored townhouse on Calle Elvira at the foot of the Albaicin, built around a courtyard with a fountain. Rooms are small and quiet and the tapas streets are immediately outside.

A four-star hotel in San Quirico d Orcia with a spa, a steam room, a restaurant and gardens, run as part of a scattered-village collection — the valley on the doorstep rather than at the end of a drive.

A three-star country hotel outside San Quirico d Orcia with a seasonal outdoor pool looking over the valley, a spa, a sauna and a tennis court — the working middle of this landscape, where a car is assumed rather than resented.

Guest rooms in the centre of San Quirico d Orcia with a garden, a terrace, a shared kitchen and parking of its own — entry level here buys a walkable village address instead of a view, and the views are a short drive in every direction anyway.

A four-star hotel a short walk behind the Grand Canal in San Marco, with a walled garden, concierge and room service.

A small hotel on the Giudecca, with a garden, a bar and a fitness room, reached from the main islands by water — the trade being a boat ride each way in exchange for a quiet canal-side street.

A two-star pensione on the Zattere in Dorsoduro, facing the wide water of the Giudecca canal, with a bar and breakfast served in the room — plain, long-established, and pointed at the light rather than at the fittings.

A belle epoque hotel on the Urumea beside the Victoria Eugenia theatre, with a restaurant, a bar and a garden terrace. The old town and the bay are both a short walk from the door.

A villa turned into a hotel on Paseo la Fe, with a garden, a seasonal outdoor pool and a sun terrace. It sits back from the promenade rather than on it.

A pension on calle San Juan in the old town, up a staircase and above the street, with a terrace. The pintxo bars are on the doorstep.

A five-star hotel standing on the piazzetta where the harbour meets the village, with a restaurant, a bar and a private beach area. The address is the point: everything Portofino is famous for happens outside the door.

A four-star hotel set back on the road above the harbour, with a garden, a sun terrace and a restaurant. Far enough from the waterfront to be quiet in the evening and close enough to walk down to it.

A three-star hotel on the lane running up from the harbour, with a concierge desk and a coffee house on site. Entry level in Portofino buys a bed inside the village itself, which is the scarce thing here.

A converted house on the slope above Manarola, arranged around terraces that look down the vineyard rows to the water. Breakfast is brought to the room and the harbour steps are minutes below.

Rooms on the seafront at Monterosso, the one village of the five with a proper beach in front of it. A shared sun terrace faces the water and the station is on the same side of town.

Simple rooms with terraces in Corniglia, the only village of the five that sits above the sea rather than on it. There is a garden, and the walking routes in both directions start at the door.

A hotel in a nineteenth-century palace on the Kärntner Ring, a short walk from the State Opera and the Musikverein, with a coffee house, a restaurant and a bar.

A hotel on Schulerstraße in the lanes behind St Stephen's Cathedral, a few minutes' walk from the Graben, with a coffee house and a bar.

A pension on Walfischgasse, a few minutes' walk from the State Opera, with air-conditioned rooms and family rooms.

A five-star villa above Marina Grande with a garden, a pool and a tennis court, set apart from the crush that works its way up to the piazzetta. Free parking and an airport shuttle, which on an island where cars are the exception counts for something.

A four-star hotel a short walk from the piazzetta, with a garden, a pool kept open beyond the season and a restaurant of its own. The compromise is deliberate: town on the doorstep, quiet behind the gate.

A relais on the Anacapri side of the island, with a garden, a restaurant and a terrace, away from the harbour traffic entirely. The entry tier on Capri buys quiet and height rather than an address by the piazzetta.

An adults-only house on the caldera ridge at Imerovigli, with a spa carrying a hammam and steam room, a pool held open beyond the summer, and terraces facing the volcano across the water. The quiet end of the caldera path, with Fira an easy walk along it.

An adults-only place on the lane running out of Oia towards Finikia, with a pool set to the view and a sun terrace above it. Oia as an address without the caldera-edge premium, and a short walk back into the village.

Plain, air-conditioned and soundproofed apartments in the middle of Fira, with a sun terrace and family rooms. The honest Santorini baseline — no caldera view, and the island's bus hub and the cliff-top path both a short walk from the door.

A hotel on the road to Palombaggia, south of Porto-Vecchio, with an outdoor pool, a restaurant and bar, and gardens; massages, cooking classes and water sports can be arranged.

Rooms in the citadel quarter of Bonifacio's cliff-top old town, with indoor and outdoor pools, a spa with sauna and hammam, and a restaurant and bar.

A hotel in Bonifacio's Saint-François quarter, a short walk from the citadel, with a terrace, a bar and parking on site.

A country place in the contrada south of Locorotondo, with an indoor pool kept open all year, a heated outdoor pool set to the view, a garden and massage on request. The valley's landscape starts at the gate rather than at the end of a drive.

Rooms and apartments spread through restored houses in the white historic centre of Locorotondo, with breakfast brought to the room and the town itself as the corridor between them. Staying here means living in the old town rather than looking at it.

Conical-roofed trulli converted for guests on the road running from Locorotondo towards Cisternino, with a garden, a barbecue and parking at the door. Entry level in this valley buys the building type everyone else drives out to look at.

Two linked manor houses on the terraces above Deia, with olive groves, a sculpture garden and a shuttle down to the cove.

A hillside hotel on the Valldemossa road, with terraced gardens, a heated pool set into the slope and a tennis court. The village is a walk along the hill from the door.

A small hotel and a set of apartments in the village itself, with a saltwater pool and a terrace over the roofs. In a village with little at the lower end, it is a way in rather than a saving.

A five-star resort stepped down a wooded hillside above the water on the island's east coast, with an infinity pool, indoor and outdoor pools, a spa with hammam and steam room, and a private beach area at the foot of the terraces.

A four-star hotel on the quieter southern side of Corfu Town, built around mature gardens with a seasonal pool, a terrace and a restaurant — the practical middle of the island's market, with the old town along the shore.

A quiet, soundproofed and air-conditioned apartment on a Venetian street inside Corfu Old Town — plain, and placed where the town's evening life happens rather than a drive away from it.

A hotel assembled out of a row of houses on rue des Remparts, in the quarter above the Ponche. There is a restaurant and a terrace, and the port is a short walk downhill.

A hotel on the avenue running out towards the Bouillabaisse side, with a garden, a heated outdoor pool and a sun terrace. Close enough to walk into the port, far enough out to park.

A small hotel on rue du Temple in the middle of town, with a garden and a restaurant. Rooms are plain and everything in Saint-Tropez is on foot from here.

A five-star hotel of real age a short walk from the smart shopping street, with a spa, a hammam, an indoor pool and a restaurant. The rooms are the traditional Florentine kind — heavy fabrics, painted ceilings — rather than a modern reinterpretation of them.

A five-star hotel occupying one of the oldest continuously used lodging buildings in the city, on a narrow street between the main square and the river. Everything in the centre is a short walk from the door.

A two-star hotel in the Santa Croce quarter with a lift, a roof solarium and a bar, a walk from the basilica and the leather workshops. Simple rooms in a part of the centre that still functions as a neighbourhood after the day visitors leave.

Rooms and suites in stone houses along the lanes of the medieval village, many of them reached by stairs, with an infinity pool and views across the water to Cap Ferrat.

A hotel and spa on the road up to La Turbie, a short drive from the old village, with an infinity pool, an indoor pool, a hammam and wide views over the sea.

A hotel on Place de la Colette at the entrance to the old village, with a terrace and a restaurant that serves from brunch through to dinner.