There's a castaway in all of us - hence the holiday appeal of an island. Europe's seas are scattered with them, many of them rich not only in beautiful beaches, but in cultural, historical and archaeological legacies from the days when they were thriving nation states in their own right. But diversity is the name of the game, so choose your haven wisely. Step ashore in Capri, say, and it's too late to discover you were really after one-goat-taverna solitude. Menorca, too, would be a major mistake if it's temples that turn you on...
The number one isle...
Majorca
The Val D'en Marche, in the north of the island, is in a wonderful dead-end of countryside - farmhouses with pools under the palms and orange trees; the sound of silence broken by the hum of bees in the bougainvillea and the thwacking of harvesters' sticks on the almond trees. Yet such rural isolation is only a 10-minute drive from the supermarket and baker's at Pollensa; 20 minutes from the beaches at Puerto Pollensa; an hour from the Spanish shops in Palma. And equally distant from the holiday developments on the south coast.
Getting there: CV Travel (020-7591 2810) has several farmhouses to rent in the valley. Camp D'Avall sleeping eight costs from £1,020 a week excluding flights and car. Also: Simply Spain (020-8541 2208); Travel Club of Upminster.
Beaches
Menorca
If all you want is a good beach, Menorca's your island. It has about 100 in all, from I-want-to be-alone covettes to enormous open swathes. In the busier south, the sands are white and fine; in the wilder and windier north, they are redder and comparatively coarse. Menorca is perfect for older couples and families with children in the armband stages of waterplay. Self-catering apartments and villas abound in resorts such as Son Bou (one of the finest beaches in the Med), Santo Tomas (purpose-built but low-key, with a sandy beach, dunes and a string of empty coves as neighbours) and Santa Galdana, a peach of a beach set in a deep horseshoe bay.
Getting there: The Travel Club of Upminster (01708 225000) features a wide selection of the better hotels and self-catering accommodation. One week self-catering from £338pp in September. Also: Magic of Spain (020-8748 4220); Meon Travel (01730 268411).
Partying
Ibiza
Ibiza is at its best by night, where there are three distinct zones: Ibiza Town, the most sophisticated; San Antonio, the most unpleasant; and the road in between the two, the most outrageous. If you're looking for tapas or nightlife, wait until midnight and get down to Teatro Pereira, the old theatre, where there is decent live music and a fine long bar. Move on from here to the marina for a drink at Izay, Keeper or Il Devino, followed perhaps by salsa at Indiana before going on to Pacha, one of a chain of cool Spanish clubs.
Getting there: One week self-catering in Figueretas with Skytours (0990 133500) from £365pp high season, based on four sharing. Also: Magic of Spain (020-8748 4220); Airtours (0870 6081940).
Self catering
Corfu
Corfu's north-east corner, nicknamed Kensington-on-Sea, is decidedly AB-posh, as well as lovely. All the upmarket self-catering companies have houses here, clinging to the cliffs with plenty of breathing space between neighbours. Corfu days are, essentially, a matter of where to bathe and where to have lunch. The beaches are beautiful, the seas crystal and the island compact - just 40 miles from end to end - so it's easy to explore. Save a day for Corfu Town with its fine Venetian architecture, pretty, narrow streets, cricket matches and cafés on the arcaded Liston.
Getting there: CV Travel's (0870 6060013) properties along the coast range from a village house in Agios Stephanos (one week based on four in June from £350pp) to a luxurious villa with pool and English cook (same time from £685pp). Also Corfu à la Carte (01635 863030); Simply Ionian (020-8541 2203).
Mountain scenery
Corsica
Mountains are likely to play a more central role in a holiday on Corsica than on any other Med island. Between the peaks are forests of beech, cork, pine, oak and chestnut, plus lakes, rivers, deep gorges, waterfalls and medieval villages clinging like limpets to impossible slopes. Such scenery is best seen in the north-west Parc Regional, which surrounds the highest peak, Monte Cinto.
Getting there: Tall Stories (01932 252002) bases its adventure sports holidays in Propriano in the south. Choose a three- or five-sport holiday (from £475/£535 respectively for one week's half-board, excluding flights). Activities include horseriding, scuba diving, canyoning (abseiling through gorges), trekking, sea-kayaking and sailing. Both Exodus (020-8675 5550) and Explore Worldwide (01252 760000) package walks. Simply Corsica (020-8541 2203) offers self-catering packages.
Bathing
Iceland
Having harnessed the geothermal energy hovering below the island's surface, Iceland is selling itself as the spa capital of Europe. Seven hot pools in and around Reykjavik allow visitors to swim outdoors in pure water heated in the depths of the Earth. These are only surpassed by The Blue Lagoon, lying in an extra-terrestrial landscape of rough lava fields where dippers can luxuriate in seawater inside a cave at a balmy 36C.
Getting there: Weekend breaks with Icelandair (020-7874 1000) from £299, three-night fly-drives from £369. Others: Arctic Experience (01737 218800); Northern Lights Tours (020-7874 1000).
Archaeology
Sicily
"To have seen Italy without having seen Sicily," wrote Goethe, "is not to have seen Italy at all, for Sicily is the clue to everything." Greeks, Romans, Carthaginians, Normans, Spanish, Austrians, French, Saracens, Italians and even the British have all left a rich cultural legacy. The spectacular line of Doric temples at Agrigento is the most important archeological site on the island, closely followed by a Roman and Greek amphitheatre and the Ear of Dionysius, a grotto used as an ancient prison at Syracuse; a third-century villa at Casale; and the isolated ruins of Selinunte, one of the most important Greek colonies in Sicily.
Getting there: 11-day guided Sicilia Antiqua holiday £1,600 with Andante Travels (01980 610555). Also: Citalia (020-8686 5533); Magic of Italy (020-8748 7575).
Escape
Kornati
There are more peaceful islets in the Kornati National Park than there are spots on a Dalmatian. Scattered around the belly of the Croatian coast, these 140 virtually uninhabited anchorages are Celtic in appearance. They make a hot and lazy paradise for yachties, offering nothing to do all day but sunbathe, swim in the Adriatic off pebbly beaches, climb the rocky contours to photograph the views and dine in the odd taverna on fresh sea bass, Dalmatian ham and black-rice risotto.
Getting there: one week sailing from Pula from £510pp based on four sharing a yacht with Sunsail (02392 222222). Croatia specialists: Dolunay (01452-501978); Transun (0870 4444747).
Exclusivity
Capri
Oh, the crowds. The world and his wife want to see Capri, and most of them seem to manage it in peak season. Moving off the ferry, the crowds clamber for the funicular up to La Piazzetta, the hub of the world, in the distinctly pretty town with its chic shops. Capri is a beautiful island of gardens, panoramas, walks and exclusive hotels. The five-star Quisisana is the grand dame, worth a stay if only for the opportunity to eavesdrop on assorted film stars, tycoons and lesser royals.
Getting there: three nights' half board from £695 with Exclusive Italy (01892 619650). Also: Abercrombie & Kent (020-7559 8686); Italian Connection (07071 303030).
Windsurfing
Lefkas
The resort of Vassiliki on Lefkas is partly a charming Greek village with beaches, partly one of the best places in Europe to windsurf. The shops are full of boards, the bay entirely filled with fluttering sails. With an enviable combination of sheltered waters, protection from the deep claw of a headland, light whispering breezes in the morning, and strong, force five to six winds in the afternoon, it is ideal for all abilities.
Getting there: One week with Club Vassiliki Holidays (01920 484121) from £375pp. Also Island Wandering (01580 860733); JMC (0870 6075085).
Gay
Mykonos
The St Tropez of the Aegean is as pretty as a postcard, with snow-white Cycladic architecture, labyrinthine streets and a cosmopolitan capital (Chora). Having visited the ruins of Delos, once the hub of Greek civilisation, life in Mykonos is a round-the-clock sophisticated club and bar scene, featuring some of the wildest, raunchiest and most beautiful people in Greece. Super Paradise is the main gay beach among a string of fine white sands where swimming costumes are generally (and legally) shed.
Getting there: apartments from £450 per week (excluding flights) and a huge range of villas with Elysian Holidays (01580 766599). Also: Priceright Holidays (020-8275 5500); Amathus (020-7611 0901).
Taking over
Eilean Shona
Play at being laird on a Scottish island. Eilean Shona, off the west coast in Loch Moidart, can be yours for a week of pampered tranquillity. You have your own, sumptuously-decorated country house (sleeping 10 adults, or 14 with children) complete with open fires, four posters, sumptuous bathrooms, piano, playroom, tennis court, beach walks and boats. Housekeeper Marie produces three organic feasts a day in the kitchen, while husband Ian maintains the garden and motor boats, ferries guests from beach picnics, and builds barbecues in the woods. A handful of self-catering cottages are so well camouflaged that house guests are totally oblivious to them.
Getting there: Eilean Shona costs £7,000 for a week; call 01967 431249. Cottages start at £235 per week from Ecosse Unique (01835 870779).
Island hopping
Dodecanese
The "12 islands" (which actually add up to 16) work perfectly as stepping stones as they lie in a reasonably-straight south-easterly line from Athens, and most of them are served by the main ferry services that operate out of Piraeus, so you can make your way slowly down the islands, from Patmos in the north to Rhodes in the south. With a few exceptions - which are only accessible by excursion boats - most of them can be reached by hopping on and off the boats as easily as a local bus. You can call at Lipsi, Leros, Kalymnos, Kos, Nissyros, Tilos and Symi. If you want to extend the trip, you can continue via Halki to the distant Dodecanese island of Karpathos.
Getting there: One week self-catering in, say, Lipsi with Laskarina Holidays (01629 822203) from £350pp. Also: Direct Greece (020-8785 4000); Manos Holidays (020-7216 8000).
Staying cool
Lofoten Islands
Some like it cool - hence the popularity of the Lofoten Islands, a scattering of islands linked by bridge or tunnel off the Norwegian coast. There's not much call for Factor 15 here, where cod is king, not the sun. They've been hanging their fish out to dry since the days of the Vikings, and won't stop until forced to by increasing departures to the mainland by the younger generation. Most tourists arrive by plane or on the boat from Bodø in Norway, relishing the prospect of an uncluttered few days' walking, cycling, tramping the northern beaches, rowing the silent fjords and yes, even sunbathing on the rocks. All this from a self-catering rorbuer (fisherman's cottage) complete with rowing boat for catching breakfast, naturally.
Getting there: Seven nights with Inntravel (01653 629010) from £847pp. Also: Scanmeridian (020-7431 5322); Taber Holidays (01274 594642).
Nudity
Ile du Levant
Taking all your clothes off is the cool thing to do. But only where it's permitted. Most islands have a beach or two where you can build up an all-over tan unnoticed. But on Ile du Levant, one of three Iles d'Hyeres floating off southern France, it is positively frowned upon to remain a "textile tourist". Although 90% of this little island is a military reserve, the remaining tenth has been a nudist colony, based in the village of Heliopolis, since the 1930s. The island is humid, sunny and wild with eucalyptus trees, yucca plants and geraniums.
Getting there: There are three reasonable hotels and three campsites; year-round daily ferries cross from Port d'Hyeres (04 94 57 44 07) and Le Lavandou (904 94 71 01 02). Further details: French Government Tourist Office (09068 244123). Calls charged at 60p a minute).
Retro
Isle of Wight
Like donkey rides on the sands and knotted hankies, the Isle of Wight is part of growing up in Britain. In fact, it's a Britain-in-bonsai. There are flowers for sale in buckets at the bottom of cottage paths, cricket on the beach and wooden clinker-built dinghies bobbing in the breeze. Visitors can fill their days with grand houses, castles, steam trains, fabulous sandy beaches, unmatched geological variety, semitropical plants, long walks, cycling paths, sailing waters, trendy hotels, seafood restaurants and huge Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Getting there: Wightlink (0870 582 7744) and Red Funnel (01703 333811) are both ferry and tour operators. Five-day excursion fares with Wightlink start at £57 for a car and up to four passengers. Sample packages with car crossing: one week at Seaview Hotel from £594 (children half price) end of May; self-catering pine lodge sleeping six around £528. Also: National Trust Holiday Cottages (01225 791199).
A bit of posh
Sardinia
For a taste of la dolce vita , look no further than the Costa Smeralda in north-east Sardinia. The Emerald Coast earned its name from its pale green, transparent waters, which have made it a playground for the mega-rich and a yachtie's paradise. Short enough to drive in a few minutes, the Costa Smeralda was "discovered" in the early 60s by a group of property developers led by the Aga Khan, who transformed it into a tastefully-landscaped strip of villas, apartments, hotels and restaurants. Exclusive properties are hidden above beautiful coves, surrounded by spongy lawns. Porto Cervo is the "capital", where humble fishing boats have been replaced by Bond-style motor launches, coiffured poodles take their owners on passeggiate and the local grocer's shop is now a branch of Gucci.
Getting there: One week B&B in Cervo Hotel from £1,020 with Exclusive Italy (01892 619650). Also: Costa Smeralda Holidays (020-7493 8303); Italian Connection 07071 303030).
Families
Spetses
The ban on private cars in Spetses is a big plus for families - and the horse-drawn carriages that replace them as serious modes of transport are seen as fun rides by children. Visitors anxious to get settled on the beach can also rent mopeds or bikes, or catch one of the caiques that set off each morning from the harbour. Beaches are pretty, pebbly, pine-shaded, and perfectly safe for small children, particularly Anarghyri on the south-west coast. Consider hotels such as the Nissia whose rooms are separate cottages, one- and two-bedroom options each with a kitchen.
Getting there: One week at The Nissia hotel, with a pool and accommodation in separate cottages with kitchens, from £565pp with Hidden Greece (020-7721 8640), flying to Athens with a three-hour onward ferry trip. Others: Filoxenia (01422 375999); CV Travel (0870 606 0013).
Walking
Crete
To many people, Crete is Aghios Nikolaos, a charming but busy resort on the north-east coast with a string of open-air tavernas and discos. But to those on the hoof, it is the untouched western end, from Hania down to Hora Sfakion in the south. Guided walking holidays can explore the spectacular White Mountains, beautiful coastal paths, lush gorges and citrus groves, turquoise lagoons and rocky coves, Byzantine mansions and fascinating monasteries. The star, of course, being a 12-mile fissure, the Samaria Gorge.
Getting there: Eight-day guided "Marvels of the Med" walking holiday from £727pp full board with Headwater (01606 813333). Also: Sunvil (020-8568 4499); Greek Sun Holidays (01732 740317).
History
Malta
Malta's strategic position along the Mediterranean trade routes has subjected it to invading conquerors since the time of the Carthaginians. Its most recent occupants were the British, who maintained it as an important naval base until the island's independence in 1874. The Natural History Museum in Mdina, the ancient capital, is worth a visit for the building alone, an elaborate palace built by the Knights of St John. More recent historic evidence appears in Valletta's Wartime Museum. Malta is hot on beaches, although certain resort hotels - especially around Mellieha Bay - have their own lush gardens and private strands.
Getting there: One week self-catering with Belleair (020-8785 3266) from £267 based on five sharing. Also: Cadogan (023 8082 8313); Malta Direct (020-8785 3233).
