Villas in Abruzzo

Roseto and Tortoreto suit sandy-beach families, Ortona and Vasto the trabocchi coast, and Sulmona the mountains. Most of our Abruzzo villas are near the Adriatic, with the Gran Sasso and Majella ranges an hour inland. It is a region Italians holiday in more than the British, so prices are lower and English is less widely spoken.

Where

Villas: 139
From, per week: £332
Cheapest month: November
Nearest airports: Pescara (Abruzzo Airport) is the nearest, and Ryanair flies there from London Stansted in around two and a half hours. Rome Fiumicino has far more flights and is about two and a half hours by car from the coast, less for Lucoli and Sulmona. Ancona suits the northern coast around Tortoreto.

Where to stay in Abruzzo

Roseto degli Abruzzi, Pineto and Silvi Marina (Teramo coast)

Roseto has the largest group of our Abruzzo villas, behind a long sandy beach with a seafront promenade and cycle path. Pineto has pine woods along the shore and the Torre di Cerrano, a coastal watchtower at the centre of a protected marine area. Silvi Marina is a resort strip with an old village on the hill above. Inland, Notaresco and Cellino Attanasio are quiet farming villages. Pescara airport is 30 to 40 minutes away.

Best for: Families who want long sandy beaches and easy shops

Not for you if: You want empty beaches in August: the lidos and sunbed rows fill with Italian families.

Tortoreto Lido, Alba Adriatica and Giulianova (northern coast)

The beaches here are wide, fine sand and shelve gently, which suits small children. Alba Adriatica and Tortoreto Lido run into each other along the shore, with Tortoreto's old town on the hill behind. Giulianova has a working fishing port and a hilltop centre with views up and down the coast. Pescara airport is around 45 minutes away, and Ancona is about an hour and a quarter.

Best for: Young families who want shallow water and a long flat promenade

Not for you if: You want dramatic coastline: this stretch is flat, built-up and lined with lidos.

Città Sant'Angelo, Collecorvino, Penne and Loreto Aprutino (Pescara hills)

Città Sant'Angelo is a hill town with a long main street and a large outlet shopping village on the plain below. Collecorvino, Picciano and Catignano are small farming villages, and Loreto Aprutino is known for olive oil. Penne has a lake nature reserve and a centre built in brick. Montesilvano, on the coast, is the nearest beach. Pescara airport is 20 to 40 minutes away.

Best for: Hill villages, olive groves and Gran Sasso views within reach of the sea

Not for you if: You want to walk to the beach: from most of these villages it is a 20 to 40 minute drive.

Ortona, Francavilla al Mare, Tollo and Roccamontepiano (Chieti coast and hills)

Francavilla has a broad sandy beach just south of Pescara. Ortona is a port town on a cliff, and south of it the coast is dotted with trabocchi, wooden fishing platforms on stilts, several now restaurants. Tollo is Montepulciano d'Abruzzo country, with cantinas selling direct. Roccamontepiano and Orsogna look across to the Majella. Pescara airport is 20 to 40 minutes away.

Best for: Wine, seafood and the start of the trabocchi coast

Not for you if: You want sand everywhere: south of Ortona the beaches are mostly pebbles and small coves.

Vasto, Casalbordino, Archi, Bomba and Casoli (southern Abruzzo)

Vasto's old town stands on a hill above the sandy beach at Vasto Marina, and the Punta Aderci reserve to the north has coves and dunes. The Via Verde, a cycle path on the old coastal railway, runs north from here to Ortona past the trabocchi. Casalbordino and Paglieta are close to the sea. Inland, Archi and Bomba sit by Lake Bomba, and Casoli faces the Majella. Roccaspinalveti is remote hill country.

Best for: Cycling the coast path and quieter beaches near the Molise border

Not for you if: You want a short airport transfer: Vasto is around an hour from Pescara.

Sulmona, Lucoli and Roccaraso (the mountains)

Sulmona is a valley town known for confetti, sugared almonds sold in elaborate bouquets, and as the birthplace of the poet Ovid. The Majella and Abruzzo national parks are close, with marked trails and the chance of chamois. Roccaraso is the region's biggest ski resort. Lucoli is near L'Aquila and the Campo Felice ski area. Pescara airport is around an hour from Sulmona, and Rome about two hours from Lucoli.

Best for: Hiking in summer and skiing in winter

Not for you if: You want to combine mountains and beach every day: the coast is an hour or more away.

When to go to Abruzzo

June and September suit the coast: warm sea, space on the beach and lower prices. July and August are busy with Italian families, especially around Ferragosto on 15 August, when lidos are full and villas book up early. The mountains are cool in summer, which makes them good for walking in July and August. The ski season at Roccaraso usually runs from December to March. Many beach restaurants and lidos close from October to May.