VILLAS
elevated
VACATIONS BY SARAH TRELEAVEN
W
hen you’re planning your next trip to Europe, settle in and stay a while to get the most out of your vacation. These days, savvy travellers are looking to villa and apartment rentals to elevate their experience. They offer groups, from extended families to gal pals, privacy, all the amenities of home and more with the promise of enchantment just beyond their doorstep in locations worldwide. Pour a coffee and soak up the sun on your deck, take a dip in a pool without anyone around, prepare dinner with market-fresh ingredients in a gorgeous kitchen. It’s a bit of heaven away from home. Check out these incredible properties for a few highlights of what you can expect at some popular holiday spots.
© Villas of Distinction
More travellers turn to villa rentals to give them all the comforts of home in destinations worldwide.
ROME: BELLA VITA IN THE ETERNAL CITY For those enamoured by the light chaos of Rome – busy streets, uneven cobblestones, food demanding to be eaten every two feet – it’s important to find a sanctuary where calm can be restored, sleep comes easy, and spritzes can be consumed at leisure. This villa, located just off the elegant Piazza del Popolo on a quiet tree-lined street near the Tiber River, offers the perfect respite. This roomy apartment, Bella Roma, has two bedrooms and two bathrooms and sleeps up to four people, making it ideal for a small family. The elegant interiors are both homey and special, decorated with an impressive collection of antiques and contemporary art. Drenched in daytime light, the dining area seats up to six, ideal for leisurely dinners. But the biggest draw might be the generous terrace, which is lined with small trees and trellises with climbing flora, and offers plenty of room to bask in the sun, snack and sip. 18