May half term

[SuuzeeeQ]

Have you just been away and can you please recommend a beautiful place for us? Every year I feel like I am chasing a unicorn! In an ideal world I am looking for:
-warm in May/June (minimum 25 degrees), going for 8-10 days
-close to an airport, no more than 1 hour drive
-in a lovely seaside town, no car needed ideally
-sandy beach (non negotiable)
-Hotel or apartments with breakfast and maybe pool
-restaurants, cafes and shops in walking distance
-not Turkey, Cyprus or Dubai and not long haul
-thinking along the lines of Italy, Greece, Spain etc

Children are primary school age. Am I asking for the impossible? Got tired of AI resorts and constantly running to the buffet and no nice towns nearby. Found an amazing Hotel in Italy this year but beach was awful (hot shingles, wavy sea) and beautiful beaches quite a drive away. Any suggestions please? i would love to plan ahead and look for deals soon. Thanks

No recommendations I'm afraid but watching with interest as my criteria is very similar! Fingers crossed someone comes along with some advice soon...

We stayed here in northern Ibiza one May half term a few years ago and had a lovely time! I think it meets all your criteria, which sound very similar to mine…

https://sessoques.com/

Although it was self catering…

we did like Cefalu in Sicily which hit our criteria (warm in June, nice seaside town, all walking distance, amazing sandy beach) but have been there a couple of times and never find anywhere that is similar. This year we also hired a car which in the end was stressful for lots of reasons (taking car seats to save cost, tyre issues one evening, were delayed for drop off because of traffic and paid a fine, driving on the other side, etc.) and would prefer somewhere we don’t need one and can walk around a nice town in the evening.

Alghero in Sardinia sounds like it would meet your criteria, although I’m afraid I can’t recommend any specific accommodation (we went there 18 years ago and camped, not what I’d be up for these days)!

Tigaki, Kos.

We have just been to Kos Town, but the area with decent beaches is a bit of a trek from town.

Have a look at Tigaki in Kos - the beach is a few km long and sandy!

just crossed post with somebody else who recommended exactly the same place 😂

We went to Sardinia a few years ago and I liked it but DH didn’t and doesn’t want to go back. We were on the east coast and you definitely needed a car to reach all the beaches. We also went the wrong time of the year (August!) and it was to crowded and expensive (€50 for two beds on the beach for a day).

And definitely no camping for me anymore 😂

Antibes / Juan Les Pins. Puglia - somewhere like Otranto or Gallipoli. Monopoli is wonderful but you need a car to get to the best beaches - there is only a couple of small coves in town.

We just got back from Sicily with our 8 year old. We flew to Catania and had 4 nights / 3 full days in Taormina (including one day visiting Mount Etna and Alcantara Gorge which DD loved). We then got a train to Cefalu for 3 nights / 2 full days which was just stunning with an incredible old town and beautiful sandy beach. Then we got a train (50 mins) to Palermo where we had an afternoon exploring and then flew home from Palermo early the next morning. One of our best holidays ever. Didn't need a car - train travel was easy and cheap (trains hug coastline which was lovely!)

Two years ago we went to Crete and stayed in an aparthotel on the beach in Chania, which was also brilliant! We moved between the pool/beach and could go into Chania town very easily. We also spent a day exploring the botanical gardens up in the hills outside Chania which was lovely and had an amazing restaurant where we had lunch. We went there and back in a taxi.

Sorry just read the thread (sorry should have done this first) and saw you've already been to Cefalu!

Another place we’ve been to and liked was Viareggio on the coast of Italy. Lovely seaside town, there’s park, beach, (but be prepared for Italian beach clubs, not Spanish/Greek style beach) good food, great wandering around in the evening, shops, good train links to other parts of Florence. You can fly to Pisa and get a train or taxi there.

We are going to a village near Chania in Crete this summer so good to see the area mentioned by another PP!

Sicily is sounding wonderful. Maybe next year.

We stayed in Cefalu a few years ago and loved it.

Yes been to Cefalu three times in the last 5 years and want to try somewhere else. Thanks

Thanks sounds lovely. I am ok with Italian style beach clubs. Is it warm enough end of May (English school holidays)?

might venture away from my beloved Italy and try Greece one year 😂

Puerto Pollensa hits almost all of your criteria. I'm just not sure on weather in late May/early June (we went in August).

Cefalu looks lovely! Do you have any specific accommodation recommendations please?

Greece is every bit as lovely as Italy.

Hmmm. To be fair we were there in July/Aug. Obviously it was gorgeous weather then. I’ve never had a bad experience on the Med in late May/early June but I suppose Viareggio isn’t Mediterranean, it’s more more north. I think you’d need to look at average temps for the time of year.

we all just prefer Italian food 😂

We liked the Astrosuite Hotel (you can get deals w Jet2 I think), small apartment w balcony, daily cleaning, swimming pool, breakfast buffet and a 1min walk from the beautiful sandy beach. 10min walk to the old town. I wouldn’t go in August though, too hot and crowded.
The Club Med looks lovely too but it’s not walking distance to the centre and my kids were too young (they don’t allow children under 6).

We had that in Cornwall this year, although the nearest airport was further than an hour away.

Not Cornwall for me, I’d like to go abroad for a better chance of sunshine.

Portugal could be an option. Plenty of places within an hour of Faro. You could get to Luz.