Sardinia, Italy

Located closer to Africa than Italy, Sardinia’s turquoise sea and white sandy beaches rival the tropics. Sant’Antioco & San Pietro, off the coast of Southwestern Sardinia, are charming islands as yet unspoiled by too much tourist development. The seaside resort of Santa Teresa di Gallura offers all the attractions of the coast without the sometimes-soulless glitz of the Costa Smeralda. Further east, Palau & Arcipelago di la Maddalena are pretty laidback, too: the archipelago itself comprises a national park with loads of island-hopping opportunities.

Away from the coast, the scenery can be similarly stunning with a pastoral quilt of forested mountain peaks, valleys of citrus groves and pastures of happily grazing cattle and sheep. In contrast, the urban scene can be disappointing. Some towns are, frankly, dull and depressing with breeze-block buildings and graffiti. Others, like medieval Bosa in the west, are impossibly picturesque with their pink-and-golden buildings flanking the river. Alghero, in Northern Sardinia, has a fascinating Catalan history (the language is still spoken here) and a delightful old centre; the lively town of Iglesias also retains an appealing Spanish legacy. Calgliari is historic and cosmopolitan at the same time, while the equally historic Oristano is quietly elegant. Traditional culture thrives most vigorously in the heartland where the elderly women are still draped in black; here tourists are rare – stared at – but ultimately welcomed.

Across the landscape are scattered 7000 nuraghi, strange conical stone fortresses seemingly built by a Sardinian Fred Flintstone. Curious temples, tombs, mysterious menhirs and remains of entire Bronze Age villages complete the prehistoric cartoon.

Sardinia distinguishes itself in the kitchen with hearty pastas and a love for pungent local cheeses, like pecorino and smoked ricotta. Sardinians also produce notable wines and a head-splitting firewater, filu e ferru.

Avoid visiting during broiling, crowded July and August, as well as in winter when the island goes into hibernation and many restaurants and hotels are closed. The best times of the year to visit are in the spring, when the wildflowers are in bloom, and during the early autumn when the temperatures are still pleasantly warm and most of the tourists have left.

Ibiza, Spain

Ibiza is the most extreme of the islands, in landscape and visitors.

The Greeks called Ibiza and Formentera the Islas Pitiusas (Islands of Pine Trees). The landscape is harsh and rocky, and the island receives little rainfall. Alongside the hardy pines, the most common crops are olives, figs and almonds. Perhaps surprisingly, about half the island (especially the fairly unspoilt northeast) remains covered by thick woods. Indeed, driving around the back roads of the north is to plunge into a rural idyll – not what one associates with Ibiza at all!

A rugged coastline is interspersed with dozens of sandy beaches, most consumed by intensive tourist developments. A few out-of-the-way beaches remain, but in summer you won’t be doing much solitary swimming.

Ibiza’s beaches and laid-back attitude first became a major drawcard in the flower-power heyday of the 1960s – while North America’s hippies were ‘California dreaming’, their Euro‑pean counterparts were heading here to tune in, turn on and drop out. It’s hard to believe that in 1956 the island boasted only 12 cars!

Initially for the hip and fashionable, Ibiza (a mixed World-Heritage site because of Ibiza city’s architecture and the island’s rich sealife) soon latched on to the money-spinner of bulk tourism and started shipping in summer sun-seekers by the thousand. Today the island populace of 111, 100 watches on as millions (more than four million passengers are registered annually through the airport alone) of hippies, fashion victims, nudists, clubbers and package tourists pour through S’Illa Blanca (the White Island) each year.

Birthplace of the rave, Ibiza is home to some of Spain’s most (in) famous clubs. The outrageous summer scene is complemented by a diverse collection of bars.

Away from the bars are the woods, coastal walking trails and quiet (if not deserted) beaches that allow you to elude Ministry of Sound–style madness. Places such as Santa Eulària d’es Riu and the small resorts and coves of the northeast are ideal for family holidays.

Interesting websites include, www.ibiza-spotlight.com and www.ecoibiza.com.

Around about 20 beautiful and comfortable hoteles rurales (rural hotels) in renovated country houses are scattered about the island’s north.

Corsica, France

Shaped like a bunch of vine-ripened grapes, Corsica (Corse) ripples with mountain ranges covered in vivid green chestnut and pine forests, pastures and fragrant maquis scrubland. Grape cultivation dates back over 3000 years, with exceptional vineyards on the island. Bastia, in the north, is famed for its laidback feel and lively spirit, without being heavy on tourism.

Corsica’s coastline curls around 1000km of chic seaside towns like Ajaccio, plunging cliffs at Golfe de Porto and glistening beaches and bays at Calvi. The silhouette of Bonifacio’s cliff-top citadel morphs seamlessly into the serrated limestone cliffs rising up from the sea. But until the early 19th century, the coast was considered worthless, susceptible to invasion. Corsicans took shelter in the mountains, and even today it’s Centru di Corsica, encompassing the town of Corte (Corti), that defines the culture. Typical Corsican cuisine consists of inland victuals like cured sausages, cheeses and lamb seasoned with wild herbs. Fishing traditionally took place around Cap Corse (the rugged ‘stem’ in the northeast). Away from the coastal resorts and bustling ports, the interior – which often stays snow-capped until July – is still where you’re most likely to encounter Corsica’s language, Corsu, as well as its distinctive customs and festivals.

The mountains make for exhilarating hikes, the most famous and challenging of which is the legendary GR20. (The death-defying switchback roads make for some dizzying driving, too.)

Pick your timing carefully – Corsica swells to bursting with summer visitors; all but withering in winter when many activities, accommodation and transport services slow or cease. The wildflower-filled spring and red-hued autumn months let you experience this Île de beauté (island of beauty) at its best.

Marrakesh, Morocco

Capital of the south and epicentre of Moroccan tourism, Marrakesh is changing fast. Once the hub of camel caravans from the south, Marrakesh remains exotic, but just as Moroccans craved modern housing, Euro­peans arrived dreaming of old houses in the heart of the medina. This happy exchange has transformed the place, bringing money and work to a city that lives off its looks and its wits.