SPECIALLY CHOSEN HOTELS

Full of character

One of the most important decisions we take when creating new holidays is choosing where people will stay. We search out small, family-run hotels, with great regional cuisine, and hoteliers who take a genuine interest in their guests. All our hotels are special, but in lots of different ways. So we have historic castles, old manor houses, working farms, stylish villas and converted convents with wonderful cloisters and hidden courtyards. So, whether you're spending the days striding the sands of Morocco or strolling along the pretty levadas on Madeira, everywhere, we've made sure that, in the evenings, you're certain of a warm welcome, memorable meals and traditional creature comforts.

Rich variety

The places themselves vary enormously, reflecting the differing tastes and styles of the owners. In France, favourites include a beautifully converted C16 coaching inn in picturesque Tourtour, "village in the sky", and a luxury hilltop château in the heart of the Loire Valley. In Italy, we're thrilled to have found Villa Lussana, an exquisite Liberty villa in the heart of the national park of the Euganean hills. Other Italian gems can be found in the small agriturismi - cosy farm-hotels - that feature on many of our walking and cycling routes. In Andalucia you can opt for a wonderfully converted 200-year old olive mill, with swimming pool, or stay in a recently restored farmhouse in the oldest village in the Alpujarras. Across the Med, in Morocco, a former C19 palace, complete with hammam, awaits, whereas in the Austrian Tyrol, the village inn has been sensitively modernised and is now a luxury 4-star hotel with heated pool, sauna and steam bath. Further afield, places we stay in the Caribbean include a 1920's plantation house in Guadeloupe, a cosy mountain lodge in Costa Rica affording balcony views over Mt. Areal and, in Kenya, we stay on a traditional Masai Mara camp in canvas cabins - look out for monkeys playing on your private verhanda!