A Shared Escape: How To Do Group Travel Right
Pulling off a successful group trip is never easy. It's fine to sit there and talk about your dream getaway with all your loved ones sharing under one roof in an idyllic setting, but taking it out of the group chat and making it a reality that is actually booked is something altogether more complicated.
Be it with a big family get together, a birthday trip or girls’ holiday, picking a destination and time off that works for everyone can prove to be a tricky task. First, there are major considerations to smooth out: annual leave, budgets, beach or city, food preferences and that's before you've even considered where you'll choose to stay. It's safe to say that there's a lot to consider,
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But it's not all doom and gloom as these holidays might have a bad reputation, but when done right the pay off is unparalleled. So, whether you're eyeing up a deep countryside getaway, a villa or hotel to rival the ones seen in Succession and The White Lotus, we've got you covered with the best accommodations for group travel, no matter the occasion.
The One For Tuscan Sun
Hidden in the rolling hills, between vineyards and olive groves, is an artist’s retreat housed in a picturesque villa. Celebrating writers, designers, film-makers, musicians and artists, Villa Lena is the place to book if your group is made up of creatives looking for a dose of inspiration. Surrounding the main building – a grand 19th-century Italian palace (hints of I Am Love with Tilda Swinton) – is a selection of farmhouses, stables and hunting lodges transformed into chic guest apartments and houses that vary from luxury double bedrooms to a four-ensuite-and-bedroom villa – all filled with design-led furniture and art-laden walls.
At the property’s hub there are daily pasta workshops and paint- ing classes for you and your party, along with a heated pool complete with perfect striped parasols. To eat, there’s the Osteria San Michele, a farm-to-fork restaurant where long communal tables overlook breathtaking views – so you won’t have to take turns cooking and washing up. Don’t miss morning yoga on the sun deck or truffle-foraging excursions for when you get bored of sunbathing by the pool.
The One For The Tagine-Lovers
Nestled in fields of argan trees in the hills of Essaouira in Morocco, overlooking the Ksob River, is the secluded oasis of Le Jardin des Douars hotel and its six luxurious villas, which offer a decadent group trip of warm rays and blue skies all year round.
Each of the villas, which accommodate up to 14 guests, has its own outdoor heated swim- ming pool within a colourful tropical garden (along with a pétanque terrain and BBQ area, too). Inside you’ll find traditional Moroccan antiques and interiors with colourful tiling so beautiful you’ll want to take it home. Rooms are filled with boardgames, books and soundsystems to keep your crowd entertained.
There’s also a full kitchen, though don’t feel you have to use it; each villa comes with a housekeeper, who can prepare everything from breakfast to chicken and almond tagines. Head over to the hotel’s main buildings for a hammam or dinner with other guests. And for days when you want to escape, there’s a shuttle service to local sand dunes for buggy rides and Essaouira’s medina (just 15 minutes away by car), where you can fill your case with regional spices and ceramics.
The One You Access By Boat
Fans of The Holiday will love Little Red Lock, an idyllic converted barn in the Cotswolds, set on a winding canal that looks as if it’s straight out of the film. The house, a part of the Unique Homestays portfolio, oozes luxurious, eccentric Oxfordshire harm, with its exposed brick walls, copper pots and Aga stove. It’s a true getaway, so deep in the countryside that you can only access it by foot or water (the closest parking is a clearing in the woods about 10 minutes away, or you can arrange for the house manager to collect you by boat.) That means the home is encircled by tranquil views: a living room opens onto the canal and the bedrooms overlook sprawling, rolling fields.
It's kayaks make it a hit for spring and summer, but the inviting kitchens (there are two), fireplaces and hot tub made it ideal for a Thanksgiving getaway with our group of expat friends and family. We arrived by car, our boot full of two enormous birds and farmer’s-market victuals, pulled on our walking boots, loaded the trolleys left for us in the woods and off we went. After the feast, we strolled along the canal beneath a clear sky full of stars, the smog of London miles away.
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