All ashore: "Sicily is home to long stretches of white-sand beaches, often free of any development. Cefalu combines a long, perfect beach with a medieval town right on the waterfront, while a trip to the capital, Palermo, can be twinned with a lazy afternoon on nearby Mondello beach. In the southeast, the Vendicari Nature Reserve is home to beautiful and often empty sandy coves.
Where to stay: a week at Casa delle Sirene, a villa right on the beach sleeping four, costs £3,560 in August through Think Sicily."
