Times may be hard but there’s little evidence that people are cutting back dramatically on holidays.
We might not be quite back to pre-pandemic days, but that hasn’t stopped a host of exciting new hotels from opening their doors – some mega-pricey, others more affordable.
The summer of 2023 is shaping up to be a bumper one. Here’s our selection…
TURKISH SUN
On the Turquoise Coast near Dalaman, the Kalkan Han Hotel has been renovated for the 2023 season.
We might not be quite back to pre-pandemic days, but that hasn’t stopped a host of exciting new hotels from opening their doors. In Turkey, the Kalkan Han Hotel (above) has been renovated for the 2023 season
The Kalkan Han Hotel lies on the Turquoise Coast near Dalaman (pictured)
You’ll find that the Kalkan Han Hotel is ideally placed for exploring the cobbled streets and traditional houses of Kalkan Old Town
It’s ideally placed for exploring the cobbled streets and traditional houses of Kalkan Old Town and includes the popular Salonika restaurant. New top-floor suites have a sea view terrace, hot tub and cooking facilities.
BOOK IT: Seven nights departing Gatwick on June 4 from £1,370pp, including flights, transfers, breakfast, a day at sea on a gulet, a hammam spa visit and beach club entry (simpsontravel.com).
UNCHARTED GREECE
Opening on July 1, Nostos is a family-run boutique hotel on the island of Serifos in the Cyclades, which has good walking, secluded beaches and the fortified Taxiarches monastery.
Nostos – which opens its doors in July – is a family-run boutique hotel on the island of Serifos (pictured)
There are 17 rooms in a pared-down style and it’s in the port of Livadi, where most visitors stay. The young owners have a firm commitment to sustainability and children are welcome.
BOOK IT: Doubles from £60 B&B (nostosboutiquehotel.com). Fly to Athens, then it’s a two-hour ferry ride from Piraeus (seajets.com).
SICILIAN GEM
Family-owned Palazzo Previtera is a boutique hotel in Linguaglossa, on the slopes of Sicily’s Mount Etna, that has taken ten years to restore
Expect ornate ceilings, heirloom furniture and contemporary paintings at Palazzo Previtera. Guests can enjoy Sicilian cookery classes, e-bike rides and wine tours
Family-owned Palazzo Previtera is a boutique hotel in Linguaglossa, on the slopes of Mount Etna, that has taken ten years to restore. Ornate ceilings, heirloom furniture and contemporary paintings are combined with a museum, art gallery, library of rare books and garden.
Guests can enjoy Sicilian cookery classes, e-bike rides and wine tours. The Michelin one-star restaurant Shalai is nearby.
BOOK IT: There are three guest rooms from £141, plus two garden cottages sleeping two or six (palazzoprevitera.com). Fly to Catania, an hour’s drive away.
BURGUNDY BEAUTY
Como Le Montrachet hotel in Burgundy offers seasonal wine-paired menus featuring Charolais beef and pigeon en croute
Como Le Montrachet, which opened last month, is devoted to the enjoyment of fine French wines and gastronomy in the heart of Burgundy. It has 30 rooms set in a trio of heritage buildings in the village of Puligny-Montrachet, with four Grand Cru vineyards close by. Its restaurant offers seasonal wine-paired menus featuring Charolais beef and pigeon en croute, while sommelier Andre Berthier runs tasting tours.
BOOK IT: Doubles from £486 B&B if booked before May 30 (comohotels.com). Fly to Lyon, a 90-minute drive away, or take a TGV train from Paris to Le Creusot, from where transfers take 40 minutes.
SCENIC NORWAY
Escape to Hattvika Lodge in the enchanting Lofoten Islands, above the Arctic Circle
New this summer at Hattvika Lodge is Fangst, a fish restaurant offering locally inspired dishes
Escape to Hattvika Lodge in the enchanting Lofoten Islands, above the Arctic Circle, where you can combine hearty outdoor activities with cool Scandi interiors.
Guests can stay in a rebuilt traditional rorbu (fisherman’s cottage) overlooking Ballstad harbour or in freestanding wooden cabins. New this summer is Fangst, a fish restaurant offering locally inspired dishes such as Arctic char with seaweed pasta and sea buckthorn tart.
BOOK IT: Doubles from £210 (hattvikalodge.no). Fly to Leknes via Oslo and Bodo then it’s a 15-minute transfer.
SPORTY SPAIN
Opening on Monday, the extensively refurbished Grand Hyatt La Manga Club Golf & Spa is a 192-room resort set in a lush, 1,300-acre estate in Murcia.
Well-suited to sporty couples and families, it has three golf courses, 28 tennis courts, a football centre and a new spa with an extensive choice of rituals using honey, rose oil or amber essence.
Take advantage of a 30 per cent discount on stays up to July 16 using the code ‘SUITE30’.
BOOK IT: Doubles from £277 B&B (lamangaclub.com). Fly to Alicante, then it’s a 75-minute drive.
PARTY IN IBIZA
Ocean Drive Ibiza, the Balearic isle’s original boutique hotel, opened 25 years ago in the World Heritage-listed Old Town. Now it’s had a glamorous Art Deco-style makeover that includes a new rooftop bar and restaurant.
Right by the port, with 40 stylish rooms, it stages art shows and live music. Make a direct booking for one of four suites and they’ll throw in breakfast and free use of a Fiat 500.
BOOK IT: Doubles are from £214 B&B (od-hotels.com).
CRETAN CALM
Inhale and exhale. Discover ‘breathwork therapy’ at Pnoe Breathing Life, a centre for wellbeing on the Greek island of Crete, with a preposterously long name.
Pnoe, which translates as ‘breath of life’, aims to restore equilibrium to weary visitors. Just outside the island’s capital of Heraklion on the north coast, the hotel has 60 suites, all with private pools. It’s also perfectly positioned for enjoying the Minoan ruins of Knossos and the island’s world-class beaches.
BOOK IT: Doubles at Pnoe Breathing Life from £360 B&B (pnoe-breathinglife.com). Fly to Heraklion, which is a 30-minute drive away.
DESIGNER PORTUGAL
Enticing: Check into designer Christian Louboutin’s new hotel, Vermelho, in Portugal. Doubles are priced from £452
Vermelho has 13 ‘flamboyant’ rooms
Shoe designer Christian Louboutin has opened a flamboyant 13-room hotel in Melides, a sleepy village 90 minutes’ drive south of Lisbon. Fittingly called Vermelho (‘red’ in Portuguese), the passion project allowed the French icon ‘to empty my storage full of antiques bought over many years’ and commission local artisans.
Ten minutes from the beach, it has a fine dining restaurant serving Portuguese dishes such as cod fish stew and wild boar in pastry.
BOOK IT: Doubles from £452 B&B (vermelhohotel.com).
LESVOS FOR FITNESS FANS
Mark Warner has added the recently refurbished Aeolian Village Beach Resort on Lesvos to its portfolio.
Sited on Skala Eressos beach, it’s good for active families, having two pools, daily fitness classes, tennis, watersports, sailing and a new padel court. Tuition and kids’ clubs catering to ages from two to 17 are included. There’s a free guided bike tour taking in local beauty spots.
BOOK IT: Seven nights departing Gatwick on May 31 from £852 pp based on two adults and two children sharing, including flights, transfers and half-board (markwarner.co.uk).
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