Holiday Spending Money

You can save a lot of money by doing a little research before you travel and plan what you are going to use for purchases while you are abroad.

Cash is the simplest, but most insecure way of carrying and using money, but it is always worth having some foreign currency and sterling with you. Check your insurance policy to see how much the insurance company will cover in the event of loss. For foreign currency shop around on line and don't leave everything till the last minute. There are some great deals for advance purchase and currency delivery to your home. Never rely on cash as your only option.

Credit and Debit Cards are the simple and convenient way to have a reserve of funds, but they are generally expensive to use drawing cash from an ATM, although they are relatively inexpensive when making purchases. Check the fees charged by your card company before you go. Please also note that most 24 hour petrol automated pumps in France do not accept UK issued credit or debit cards.

Travellers Cheques are one of the most secure options, but they are expensive to purchase and changing sterling cheques usually incurs extra commission or poorer exchange rates. Moreover, especially in Italy there are less and less places that accept them or even banks willing to change them, including some of the most famous names in travellers cheques. One of our customers recently who had changed all their holiday money into sterling travellers cheques, were told once they got to Italy was that these could be changed only in Rome ! Our villa owner very kindly lent them some Euros until they could organise a transfer of funds to a local bank.

Pre-paid Cards are the new travellers cheques Many cards are now offered with free cash withdrawal facilities , no charge for usage and can be delivered to your home or picked up at your departure point. This should always be considered as it does not advertise to potential burglars the fact that you are going to be away from home. You have a personal pin and can top up your card on-line or by phone. Shop around for the best deals.

The Euro is at €1.20 to the £ today and looks like staying there for a while. We still have a number of luxury villas in France and Italy available for selected weeks in July and August. Many of our villa rentals are on special offer so take advantage of the exchange rate and call us on 01442 870055 to speak to one of our reservations team or visit our website to browse our collection of handpicked villa rentals

Who invented Football ?

Well the Brits didn't invent the version called soccer, but through William Webb Ellis we can claim rugby football as a native game - at which currently we would appear to be better ! No it was the Italians who developed a Roman game "harpastum" into the medieval "Calcio Fiorentino" or "Calcio" the name by which soccer is still called in Italy today.

Piazza Santa Croce in Florence (Firenze) is called the cradle of football and Count Giovanni di Bardi drew up the rules in 1580 for a game with 27 on each side. That's probably where another present day Italian called Capello learned his skills.

We we still have a number of luxury villas in Italy to rent this Summer. All our villas have pools and many of our Italian villas are within easy each of the home of football and many other great locations. During World Cup intervals why not cheer yourself up by browsing our site of luxury villas in France and Italy or call us on 01442 870055.

Taking the car

Recent experiences with the delays in air travel caused by the ash cloud from the volcano called ....cool remind me how uncool air travel can be especially on some budget airlines and how convenient and pleasant it can be to take your car to the continent. The weaker Euro make petrol and moreso diesel significantly cheaper than in UK. If you haven't planned your summer holiday yet, why not think about taking the car. Set out on Friday and you can even be on the Cote d'Azur by Saturday evening. Enjoy the famous resorts of Villefranche, Antibes, Juan-les-Pins or Cannes which offer the France for so long sought after by discerning Brits. These gems are complemented by their historic inland neighbours such as Valbonne, Grasse, Vence or Mougins. If you have more time take a week on the way there or back in the Dordogne or Loire Valley. We still have rentals available on the Cote d'Azur, in Provence, the Loire and Dordogne.
The motorway system on the continent makes destinations in Italy comfortably accessible by car with an overnight stop recommended. Our website can show you rentals in Italy still available.
Safe and happy motoring!

The Euro!

The cost of France and Italy grows cheaper by the day...or so it seems. The last time the Euro was worth this amount against the pound was way back in December 2008.

So its official...now you really are getting something for your money when you travel to the Euro zone. The reasons are a multitude, but mainly down to the weakness of Greece and several others with debt, rather than an apparent strength of the pound. With the UK also heavily saddled with debt, the good times might not always last, so nows a good time to take advantage if you are looking to purchase your holiday Euros. At the time of writing, the rate is 1.21... now if only we had have known that a few months ago!

If you are still thinking of a holiday villa for summer 2010, we have late villa deals in France and late villa deals in Italy. A further way to save is to click through and see whats on offer, however availability is of course limited.

Our trained and knowledgable reservation staff are on hand to guide you through the late deals we have: Tel +44 (0) 1442 870055.

St Tropez : focus for 2010

The bedrock of the Riviera in France, the region where the highlife and the high living flock to, to be seen and to be seen in, is of course St Tropez. From tasteful villages like St Maxime, Grimaud, to fun places such as Pampelonne beach, Beauvallon, Club 55 and more, its a vibrant, exciting and joyous destination for a holiday.

In high season, the place literally buzzes with activity, laughter and frivolity. Further along the coast, or indeed inland, one can of course see other exciting places: Cannes, Nice, Montecarlo, or even to Menton and to cross the border into Italy!

So how do you get your piece of the action? We at Quality Villas have one of the most select portfolios of St Tropez villas available in the market. The good news is, we still have some availability for summer 2010, so if you havent yet booked your summer villa vacation, we recommend giving us a call. If St Tropez is a little too lively for you, we can of course offer property from other regions in France, for example the rural south west; a much more placid offering in a green, welcoming location.

The featured villa is Villa Prelude (image above), sleeping 8, it has a private heated pool, air conditioned bedrooms and views across the gulf to St Tropez. Further, it is within walking distance of the beach, golf and tennis. A week in high season summer: was £9280, now £8350. Click here for this French villa near beach .

If you wish to speak to one of our experienced villa consultants to discuss your requirements, please call us on 01442 870055 or email info@qualityvillas.com

Exciting, Mystical and Diverse

...I am talking about Morocco, a country that one of our area managers is in love with. Our very own Queen of Morocco (Gill) has been visiting Agadir to develop our villa programme in Aglou Plage (a beach side resort, south of Agadir).
This fascinating country where the old customs and way of life still exist in rural areas to the newly built up and westernised areas of Agadir offers so much to any traveller who is looking for sun, fascinating cities and long sandy beaches.

There is a very western feel about the place with its beachfront bars, long boulevards and the mild winter climate (January average temperature 20 centrigrade/68 farenheit) which has made it a popular winter sun destination for northern Europeans.

We have three luxury villas at the moment, right on the beach and all in a residential domain that offer quality accommodation with comfort in mind. Our newest recruit is Dar Soumaya, a lovely brightly painted villa and sparkling blue infinity pool right next to the beach!

Contact us now to discuss your autumn and winter sun holiday on 01442 870055 or visit our website of luxury villas in Morocco .

A great Italian offer!

A new villa to our programme for 2010, but one which has been quickly seen as an enticing prospect by many of our clients is Casa dei Pellegrini.

Located near Orvieto, at the crossroads between Tuscany, Umbria and Lazio in Italy, this charming property sleeps 8, has a 12m x 8m swimming pool and enjoys wonderful views of the surrounding countryside. There are cotto floors and chestnut beams - lovingly restored by the owners (the property was derelict until a few years ago!)
There is also a games room at the property, something to keep the family active, or simply why not relax by the pool!

Click here to visit this villa in Italy - or please call to speak to one of our staff about our villa portfolio.

The best news, the last remaining weeks for 2010 have been reduced as follows:

12-19 June 2010 was £2600, now £1865
7-14 August 2010 was £4100, now £2950
18-25 September 2010 was £2660, now £1865

If you would prefer a French holiday villa - please click also to visit the website.

Lets keep in touch!

The blog, our website, or even just calling us are all great ways to stay in touch. As we have mentioned so often, the real plus of dealing with Quality Villas for your villa holiday is the fact that we visit and know our villas. Remember also our staff are mostly French or Italian and know the regions and countries personally. In addition, we have no complicated call centres and if you ring us, you will never be kept waiting to speak to someone: get straight through and talk to a villa expert.

In addition, we also have an enewsletter that goes out monthly. In this publication one can see latest offers, news about our company including new destinations we feature and why booking with Quality Villas can be so different for you than choosing someone else. Remember we are ABTA members and every villa booking is financially bonded - always worth checking before booking.

If you might like to sign up to our enewsletter, please click here and enter your email address (thats all!)
Please visit us on line for French villas or for Italian villas . Call us on 0044 (0) 1442 870055.

Our latest addition!

Although Quality Villas are predominantly known for luxury villas with pool in the South of France (Cote d'Azur, St Tropez and so on), we also have strong offerings in the south west, central and north of France.
In paticular, of recent weeks, we have been making a number of visits to Brittany in order to take on more villas to supplement our programme.
Our latest additions are Ferme de Trez and Villa de la Torche.
Please click the links to visit the properties directly.

Villa de la Torche for example enjoys a heated pool and is just under a mile to the beach. There are still weeks available in July and August. This simple farmhouse has been restored to a high standard and will surely be in high demand.

If you are interested in this Brittany villa and would like to speak to someone that has visited it, we would be happy to help!

01442 870055
Visit us online for our French villa selection.

More special offers...

As Spring sunshine abounds across the UK, so do promises of a warm summer! However as we all know from the past three years, summers and summer sun in the UK generally don't appear in the same sentence!

Fortunately France and Italy benefit slightly more from our sporadic climate, such that relaxing by the poolside under blue skies is usually a certainty.

We at Quality Villas have our fingers on the pulse for what our clients desire : we still have a number of excellent properties available, some at specially reduced rates, across the south of France (picture yourself relaxing with sea view, glass in hand, poolside) to our sublime Tuscan villas (much of the same as in France) but slightly better views, but I am biased!

In any event, our staff who visit the villas personally would be very happy to discuss villa arrangements with you, or alternatively why not browse online :
click here for French villas and here for Italian villas

Late deals...

As we edge towards the end of the month, so we edge closer to the summer and the main rental period for our many villas owners.

Several owners with unsold villa weeks have decided to reduce the rates they usually ask, so over the coming days, these offers will be posted onto our special villa offers page.

We hope you will see something you like if you are looking for a late deal, however we also have a number of competitively priced villas (that are not reduced) - we only ask that you call us with an idea of budget and your preferred travelling period. Our staff will then find a selection of villas for you.

Of special note, villa Le Mazet - a very popular rental property in Provence has returned to our programme. With good availability, due to its late arrival on our programme, its sure to rent out quickly. Please call us if you could be interest in this small holiday villa Provence .

A slight deviation from our usual fare, we have recently been speaking with our friends at Trip Advisor. Writer Mike Riga was keen to express his view of Argentina, we hope you find his words of interest:

One of South America’s best kept secrets, Argentina is a beautiful country with a lot to offer to an intrepid tourist. Mixing vibrant, cultural cities with pastoral countryside and a long, scenic coastline, South America’s second-largest country is a spectacular place to spend an extended sojourn. A great area for a family with divergent interests, Argentina is worth every penny. One day you could find yourself gazing upon the majestic Andes and the unique natural ecosystem within its shadow and another could find you amongst the spectacular architecture and bustling streets of Argentina’s cultural center and capital, Buenos Aires. While its takes an extended stay to truly bear witness to all that Argentina has to offer, a discerning traveler will find himself in luck, as TripAdvisor has much to offer by way of Buenos Aires Vacation Rentals as well as all the necessary travel information needed to navigate this truly unique part of the world. With over 150 rental options of all shapes, sizes, locations, and prices, TripAdvisor is the number one place to begin your South American journey today.

Jasmine Festival in Grasse

Quality Villas has many properties around the town of Grasse - this region is ever popular with our clients each year.

One event taking place in August is the Jasmine Festival in Grasse. The festival marks the start of the jasmine harvest. To further enlighten ones olfactory senses, there are also various perfume factories one can visit (Fragonard, Galimard, Molinard...) and indeed even the International Musuem of Perfume! This 3500m square building was re-opened in October 2008 and is open June-September.

If scents aren't your thing, Grasse has a host of other activities available, including the tourist train (daily Apr-Oct) a fine way to explore the old town in style and cathedral. There are also olive mills, museums, gardens and golf nearby.

If you think you might be interested in a visit to Grasse or villas in France - we would ask you to visit us online or to call one of our friendly sales team.

For a villa near Grasse , please see Villa Mozart (ref PR436 on our website.)

Holidays at the ready!

March has been a busy month for us thus far, placing clients far and wide across the beautiful lands of France and Italy for their summer holidays!

Our posting for this week however is a little look at Normandy, a region closest to us geographically but one we know less about than the much travelled French Riviera for example.

We have a number of french cottages along the Normandy coast, for example Ferme de la Haye - sleeping 10, not far from Honfleur. This particular cottage is featured above (image) and can be rented from £1635 per week for the complete property.

On the 20th June this year, the 'Grand Picnic' takes place in Normandy - part of the impressionist festival - everyone is invited! The idea is to recreate the famous impressionist paintings such as Renoirs 'Dejeuner des Canotiers' or Manets 'Dejeuner sur l'Herbe. Special check tablecloths will be available!

If you would like to know more about our properties in France and in particular Normandy, please call one of our staff on 01442 870055 or email us : info@qualityvillas.com


We do have other cottages in France , but those along the Norman coast have a certain characteristic in style and architecture quite unique to the region.

Special offers...

Featured left: Maison St Gervais - a lovely property in SW France - the rates just having been reduced by almost 15%. Click here to visit this South of France villa

As the season ticks by, so more and more owners approach us with unsold weeks left. Of course the best way to get the holiday you want on the date you want is to book early. Given that once a villa week is sold, it is 'gone' and that each villa is so unique to each persons requirements, we always advocate this approach and to book before the chance goes.

However for someone looking for the last minute deal - and this does happen from time to time, even with luxury villas, we do get them and will post them either here or online on our special offer villas page.

Its always an idea to get the best offers straight to your inbox - so why not sign up for our e-newsletter?

Alternatively if you have a restricted budget, but an idea of where you want to go and for how long, our trained sales consultants can usually suggest something. Please give us a try : info@qualityvillas.com