Lifestyle

Coronavirus may have temporarily put your villa holiday plans on hold. But that doesn’t mean you can’t still indulge your love of exploring the world. Here are 5 travel-related activities you and the family can enjoy at home during this period: 1. ...

The “shoulder seasons” are those travel periods that fall in spring and autumn, between the peak and fully off-peak seasons. For those not at the mercy of school terms – like couples, retirees, and families with tots – they can be the perfect times ...

Has the winter series of Love Island got you glued to the TV watching them get up to their cheeky antics in the sun? If the show’s got you dreaming of a villa holiday with your group of friends, then now is the perfect time to start planning one! ...

5 easy yoga poses to help you chill on your villa holidayRead more 5 easy yoga poses to help you chill on your villa holiday ...

Now the school holidays are over, why not book a trip away for just the two of you? By jetting away off-peak, you’ll skip the crowds and save money on accommodation and air fares. Here are four small but fabulous villas that are just the ticket for ...

Ah, holiday time. A chance to leave the stressful everyday routine behind and spend a few weeks indulging in endless food, drink, sun and relaxation. But you don’t have to completely neglect your health and fitness while you’re away. Check out our ...

7 easy ways to go green (and save money) on holiday   Climate change. Plastic pollution. Food waste. These are all hot topics right now, and with good reason. But how can you care for the planet when you’re miles away from home? Well, it’s not ...

Taste a piece of Puglia at home with this delicious Orecchiette pasta with broccoli sauce. Ingredients 12 ounces broccoli florets- cut or broken into very small florets about equal size 8 ounces short pasta- orecchiette pasta, penne, rigatoni, etc ...

Have you booked your holiday? How did you decide where you were going? Did you spend hours thumbing through Instagram, checking out your friends’ pictures of sun-kissed legs set against the backdrop of an azure sea, or envying those influencers ...

With temperatures this week due to reach a scorching 38°C, we’ve put together a list of handy tips to keep you and your family safe in the sun 1 Make sure you always carry water with you – carrying water or something cool to drink not only keeps ...

To celebrate our 33rd birthday, we’ve chosen 33 reasons why customers love holidaying with Villa Plus! 1.       You’ll have your own very own private pool. 2.       We have villa in 18 European destinations, so you have plenty of choice..     ...

Want a taste of Greece without leaving the country? Try our easy to follow Moussaka recipe. Ingredients 750g/1lb 10½oz lamb mince 1 onion, finely chopped 2 garlic cloves, crushed 1 tsp dried oregano 1½ tsp dried mint 1 bay leaf 1 cinnamon stick 1 ...

Are you glued to your TV watching the Love Island celebs get up to their cheeky antics in the Majorcan sun? If the show’s got you dreaming of a villa holiday to this amazing Balearic island, here are four ways to enjoy life out there.   Stay ...

This delicious dish is from Spain and is the ideal meal for a night in with your friends and family.   Ingredients  4 tablespoons olive oil 1 onion, chopped 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 red pepper, chopped 125g (4¼ oz) fresh chorizo sausage, ...

It’s time to pour the Pimms and bring out the strawberries – the nation’s favourite tennis tournament is here once more! If you’re feeling inspired to dust off your racket and perfect your backhand, here are some of our holiday villas with tennis ...

This tasty and simple dish is from Croatia and is the ideal dinner for a night in at your villa. Ingredients 150g Fuži 30g butter 100g cream 40g Truffle sauce Pinch of salt & Pepper Garnish Drizzle of Truffle Olive Oil Grated Parmesan Cheese ...

Are you an Instagram lover deciding where to book your next villa holiday? Look no further than our top three most photogenic destinations in Europe. Rent a holiday villa at one of these Insta-worthy locations and you’ll get incredible #nofilter ...

Hi Angela, tell us a little about your role at Villa Plus I look after all of those out of hours queries, from email to live chat & social media. So, when it’s late at night and you’re popping your lovely holiday pics on our Facebook site, it’s ...

Our recipe for delicious Souvlaki, from Cyprus, is delightfully simple yet wonderfully tasty! Easy to make at home or in the comfort of your villa, this dish will please everyone. Ingredients 3 sweet pointed peppers 4 sprigs fresh mint, leaves ...

As part of our On The Gourmet Trail campaign, we are taking the most popular and traditional dishes from our fantastic holiday destinations and showing you how to create them on the BBQ at your villa or in your kitchen back home. Here is a recipe ...

To celebrate the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2019 we decided to dig out some of our floral inspired villas and share a bunch of our favourites with you.   Villa Poppy, Polis, Cyprus Situated in a fantastic central location, just 900 yds from the ...

Do you travel light or tend to over-prepare? We reveal the packing habits of UK holidaymakers, revealing the most popular items we like to cram in.   How do you tackle packing for holidays? Some of us will get started weeks in advance, while ...

Do you let your hair down on holiday or do you prefer to pace yourself? Villa Plus looks at how wild we go when we get away from it all. What do you look for in a holiday? Some of us are seeking sun-filled days and nights of bar hopping, while ...

New Year, New You? As we look ahead to 2019 we’ve asked some of the Villa Plus team what their 2019 resolutions are. Nick Cooper – Founder and Co-owner Don’t put off next year what you can do this year. Sandra – Area Manager ...

We’re dedicated to making sure our customers have a fantastic time on holiday, so it’s no surprise that some unusual requests and complaints are sent our way every now and again. From inflatable animal treatment practices to shop ...

Term Time Have you ever been tempted to take the kids out of school to take them on the trip of a lifetime? Perhaps work commitments get in the way, you’ve found an amazing mid-term deal on a holiday to Spain, or maybe there’s a package on a family ...

Here at Villa Plus, we love Spanish food. The various scents and tastes which are now synonymous with the country’s cuisine are renowned worldwide and draw so many holidaymakers to its beautiful coastlines year upon year. To help you learn how to ...

There’s something idyllic about cycling along a clifftop track while the sea gently crashes beneath you. Apart from that and the whizz of your hubs, the world seems mysteriously quiet. It’s moments like this that make cycling holidays in the ...

Holiday rentals provide the perfect basecamp for snorkelling getaways. Hiring a villa gives you the freedom to prepare your own packed lunches and dinners, and you’ll have plenty of room to store your snorkels, flippers and wetsuits. Image by, ...

 Few sports are as easily accessible as table tennis. You don’t need lightning-quick reflexes or the hand-eye coordination of Andy Murray to enjoy the rush of a good ping pong rally – just a little perseverance and the right facilities. Luckily, ...

Holiday travel games are an essential for any self-catering getaway, particularly if you have young kids. Be a savvy holidaymaker, load up the suitcase with a few portable games and bring some extra fun to your rental accommodation. These five� ...

The best ways to propose on holiday are personal and based on what your partner loves. Stick to those two all-important mantras and you shouldn’t go far wrong. To stay on the safe side, it’s a good plan to brainstorm a handful of proposal ideas. ...

When many people imagine their perfect honeymoon, they envision nights in a hotel’s most luxurious suite, complete with a hot tub, rose petals and some bubbly. Yet this style of honeymoon can be both expensive and lacking in adventure. A villa ...

After something a little different to lounging about by the swimming pool? Satisfy your inner adventurer and plan a cycling holiday in Europe instead! Kids will love the active aspect to it, and you’ll get to see some of your favourite destinations ...

Want to take your cycle rides up a gear, beyond the daily commute and weekend trips? Then do so with a cycling holiday! The mix of exhilaration and tranquillity this kind of activity getaway delivers is nothing short of fantastic for your mind, ...

One of a holiday’s simplest, yet most rewarding pleasures is receiving the keys to your luxury villa. Upon entering, you realise you’ve not only unlocked the front door, but a whole realm of possibilities to enjoy your time away from home. From ...

One of the best things about going abroad is getting stuck into that first evening meal under the setting sun. Imagine the orange light illuminating off the plates, or the sound of clinking glasses mixed with the crash of waves on a nearby beach. ...

Travelling alone can be a daunting prospect, but with adventures waiting wherever you go, and interesting people to meet in every destination, it’s well worth taking the plunge. If you’re trying to decide on the best accommodation for solo ...

For many of us, going on holiday means a few weeks of indulgence – sunning ourselves by the beach or pool between delicious meals. Once you’re settled, there’s no reason why your stay in a luxury villa won’t leave you as pampered as a weekend in an ...

Holidays might involve spending money, but that doesn’t mean you have to fork out a fortune if you want to enjoy a sunny getaway. There are countless ways to keep costs down when you travel, and choosing self-catering accommodation is a great way ...

A self-catering holiday doesn’t mean you have to forgo the cuisine of your destination. In fact, by learning a few recipes you can enjoy the flavours of where you are and have a new recipe to bring home! To help you savour the real taste of, ...

Come February and the grim winter weather still feels like it’s never going to leave. What better time to wave the dreary skies cheerio for a few days and appreciate a slice of sun instead? And that’s without even mentioning that Valentine’s Day is ...

Package holidays in hotels might be convenient, but that doesn’t mean they’re the most cost-effective, or even the most comfortable option. In a holiday rental, you can experience luxury accommodation at a much lower price, and this is only one of ...

Knowing where you want to go on holiday is always a good start when it comes to finding a self-catering villa or holiday let. But if you don’t have your heart set on a destination, the things you need to consider are how many people are going and ...

Whether holiday high season is approaching or you’re in the depths of winter, hiring a private villa on a sunny European coastline is a tempting option at any time of year. But it can be especially enticing to rent one for a Christmas with a ...

Choosing a self-catering holiday in a villa lets you do as you please. You can come and go, and eat and drink, whenever and whatever you like. This unbeatable flexibility, combined with the cost-effectiveness of being able to live like a local, is ...

Everyone has their own picture of the perfect romantic getaway, and that can be a secluded retreat, a weekend of wining and dining, or an action-packed adventure. No matter what kind of holiday you and your partner prefer, renting a holiday home is ...

To celebrate 30 incredible years of sunshine holidays, we are giving away a host of prizes from chocolates and wine to holiday vouchers! Click on the image below for details on how to enter. Competition terms and conditions: The closing period for ...

It’s a hat-trick!  We are extremely happy to announce that we have won a top award at the prestigious British Travel Awards for a third straight year. Villa Plus won the BTA 2015 award for the Best Villa/Self Catering Holiday Booking Company – ...

At Villa Plus we endeavour to provide you with the perfect holiday.  Until recently when booking a package holiday with us, we would automatically include one suitcase per person in your price.  Due to public demand we have now changed this and now ...

Shaun has found his place in the nation’s hearts as a TV and movie favourite, and is now adorning the streets of our capital city in statue form. Those of you who are Wallace and Gromit fans may have taken part in the Gromit across Bristol ...

Villa Plus is delighted to announce that we will be one of the sponsors of a ewe-nique new art trail coming to London very soon. LONDON’S BLEATING: From Saturday 28th March, a flock of 50 five-foot tall sculptures of Shaun the Sheep will be ...

It’s World Book Day! To celebrate, we’ve compiled a playlist for this month which is entirely made up of songs which have works of literature as their main inspiration. Have a listen to the playlist and see if you can guess the books that go with ...

We’re delighted to share with you a sneak peak of the stunning Chinese themed sculptures, which will form part of the Shaun in the City trail. We hope you agree that they look baa-rilliant! “Jingtai”, designed by Simon Farrell, is inspired by ...

Hi everyone, meet Shaun the Sheep. We are very excited to be an official sponsor of Shaun In The City raising money for Wallace & Gromit’s Children Charity, an extremely special and worthwhile cause. With Shaun In The City and a host of ...

When adding flights to your Villa Plus booking, why not choose Thomas Cook?  You can take advantage of their new, refurbished and refreshed fleet.  Once you have your ideal villa selected and added Thomas Cook flights, you can then start picking ...

As full ABTA members, we wanted to share the latest promotion from the UKs largest travel association and let everyone know about the benefits of booking your holiday early! Booking early, particularly in January and February has many advantages: & ...

We are guessing that many of you would have seen our latest TV advert over the past week or so.  If you haven’t, then your TV must be broken! You can view our latest advert below, please let us know what you think of the advert and make sure ...

We have added Norwegian Air to our list of flight providers and thought we would give you a bit of information on our latest carrier. Did you know Norwegian is now the third largest low-cost airline in Europe? It is the second largest airline in ...

Travel documents Make sure you have your travel documents.  At Villa Plus we send out the information 10-14 days before you travel.  Taking your documents will ensure that when you arrive, you can start your holiday as smoothly as possible, ...