![]() Aix has a rich military history and served as a prison during the French Revolution. In contrast to the nearby islands of Ré and Oléron, there’s no bridge connecting Aix to the mainland, so you’ll arrive at the fortified port by ferry. Sharing the same topography is the tiny Île d’Aix, to the south. Parisians flock to the slow seaside isle for the weekend, bringing a chic vibe to its scattering of pretty villages linked by a network of cycle paths that wind past salt marshes and oyster beds. ![]() Off the coast of La Rochelle, it’s the Île de Ré that hogs the limelight. īest European Island for: Oysters on the beach Where to stay: Make a base at boutique hotel ThirtySeven, where a Milanese couple have turned three farmhouses into a cool hideaway. Getting to Gozo: Fly to Malta International Airport, and from there it’s one hour by road to Cirkewwa Harbour, where ferries to Gozo depart. Then join the queue for ftira (Maltese pizza) at the Mekren bakery in Nadur. Spend your days swimming in sparkling coves, sipping a Kinnie – the locals' favourite orange-flavoured fizzy drink – in the sun and feasting on plates of sea urchin spaghetti. North Africa, Arabia and Sicily meet in this sizzling and spiky stone in the sea. Despite such claims to fame, Malta’s smaller sister island remains unspoilt and untamed. Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie spent several months here filming By The Sea, and the island’s now crumbled Azure Window featured in the first episode of Game of Thrones. This rugged island surrounded by cerulean waters forms the perfect backdrop for myths and legends – and for films. That Homer’s Ogygia is widely considered to be Gozo should come as no surprise. Instead, the sparkling island of Ogygia winked at him and he was lured ashore, spending seven years under the spell of its seductive sea nymph, Calypso. Odysseus nearly didn’t make it home to his wife, Penelope. ![]() īest European Island for: Sparkling coves Where to stay: Rent one of the twelve adegas or cottages – made from dark volcanic stone from Adegas do Pico – situated in the small village of Prainha. Alternatively, fly to Lisbon, where you can pick up a direct flight to Pico. ![]() Getting to Pico: The Azores’ own SATA airline hops around the islands and also operates a four-hour flight from London Gatwick to São Miguel. Back on dry land, whales form the inspiration for a new cypress-wood extension at Cella Bar, the island’s designer hotspot for drinks and dinner. The Princess Alice Bank, a submerged seamount 45 nautical miles from Pico, is a big draw for experienced divers who come to see diverse sea life and huge shoals of mobula and manta rays. Visit from March to October for whale-watching, and from July to October for the optimum opportunity to swim in the wild with dolphins. The island is the second largest in the Azorean cluster, and one of the world’s top destinations for whale-watching, being the closest land mass to their migration routes. Leave your espadrilles at home on the volcanic island of Pico, you’ll need your walking boots instead for hikes across basalt-walled vineyards and up the dominating Mount Pico. Way out in the North Atlantic, the Portuguese Azores feel even further from the Algarve than they actually are. Where to stay: To stay, skip Hotel Solitudo and go for the Struga Lighthouse, 30 minutes by taxi from Ubli port with spectacular views of the sea īest European Island for: Whale-watching and swimming with dolphins in the wild **Getting to Lastovo:**Car ferries run twice daily from Split to Lastovo and take just over four hours, or foot passengers can take the faster daily catamaran that takes three. There are a few good restaurants here too dine on the local speciality, fresh lobster spaghetti. Swim at Mihajla beach and then begin the ascent towards Lastovo Village, where the warren of flower-filled alleys takes you past old stone houses and up further still to your reward – a glass of the island’s own Maraština wine at a bar at the top of the hill. Inhale the warm scent of Aleppo pines and spot the red fruit of the strawberry tree as you explore the tangle of walking trails that criss-cross from inland villages out to the coast. Getting back to nature is what it’s all about here 70 per cent of the island’s surface is covered in forest. More than four hours by ferry from Split and boasting just one hotel, Lastovo is a far cry from Croatia’s non-stop party islands. The largest of the islands is Lastovo itself, which has a protected nature park. Somewhere between the northern tip of Puglia and the southern end of the Dalmatian Coast sits the Lastovo archipelago, where 47 rugged islands and islets are scattered like gemstones in the crystalline Adriatic. Best European Island for: Croatia's remotest island
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