Villa Sal

The appeal of Villa Sal is almost too simple to effectively describe. It’s not one but two villas, set in the seaside town of Lagoa on San Miguel in the Azores, the Portuguese islands in the middle of the Atlantic almost a thousand miles due west of Lisbon. And they get right to the point, looking straight out to sea from a south-facing clifftop setting.

So far, so idyllic. But this is no luxury hotel. These villas feel residential to the core, thanks to their full kitchens, their eclectic maritime-inspired décor, and their sheer unpretentiousness. The one-bedroom villa sleeps up to three, the two-bedroom five, both with the benefit of a sofa bed. And if you’re traveling in a larger party, it’s easy enough to connect them both.

The rocky coastline is home not just to some spectacular scenery but to some unique natural swimming pools as well; late spring, meanwhile, is whale-watching season in the Azores, and if you don’t spot one from your bedroom window, it’s easy enough to arrange a tour. There are bigger and swankier hotels in the world, to be sure, but a more pleasant, more low-key subtropical island escape would be difficult to conceive.