© Photo: iStockFrance
Provence and the Côte d'Azur
It conjures up images that no one can resist, from the casino at Monte Carlo to the lavender fields of Grasse. The South of France is the longest confirmed as well as the chicest holiday spot in the world, with the rich and famous flocking there to enjoy its gorgeous climate and scenery ever since the 18th century. And even now, when a private jet can whisk them to the further points of the globe on a whim, it remains as seductive as ever. Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, Joan Collins and Karl Largerfeld all love the Côte d'Azur.
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Tuscany, Lake Como and Portofino
Who wouldn't want a taste of La Dolce Vita in one of the most welcoming countries in Europe? The north in particular attracts a starry crowd. For romantics, two places stand out. There's Portofino, the former fishing village whose timeless charm provided a backdrop for the love affair of Prince Rainier of Monaco and Grace Kelly. Then there's Lake Como, where the Alps are reflected in deep blue water, and elegant Mediterranean villas dot the shore. Meanwhile those seeking peace and quiet head to Tuscany, where Sting has a home. Denzel Washington regularly visits Portofino and George Clooney has owned a villa on Lake Como for years.
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Costa del Sol and the Balearic Islands
It sometimes seems as if every celebrity who ever visited Marbella has gone on to buy a house there. It's been the jewel in the crown of the Costa del Sol since the 1950s, when Prince Alfonso de Hohenlohe built the Marbella Club, home from home to Ava Gardner, Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant. These days, sheiks rub shoulders with sports stars, singers and Hollywood's finest. Those, that is, who haven't headed to the beautiful Balearic Islands, where Majorca proves especially magnetic. Famous names who've bought there include Michael Douglas, Claudia Schiffer, Annie Lennox and, most recently, Brad Pitt.
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Maui, Kauai
Oprah Winfrey escapes to Maui, the second-largest of the Hawaiian islands, where she owns a beautiful 21st century farmhouse on Mount Haleakala with panoramic views of the ocean and the central valley of the island, several times a year. The former chat show queen-turned-network owner scooped up a further 60 acres of land in east Maui simply to preserve it. Oprah's good friend Michelle Obama and her husband Barack also make frequent visits to Hawaii, the President's birthplace, where they visit the TV star. Other celebrities to jet over to the paradise island include Owen Wilson and Julia Roberts, who bought herself a beachfront house of Kauai's north shore, in Hanalei.
© Photo: iStockLong Island
The Hamptons
New York's exclusive Long Island has long been a favourite with Hollywood's glitterati. Everyone from Alec Baldwin, Scarlett Johannson and Sarah Jessica Parker to Jennifer Lopez, Gwyneth Paltrow and P Diddy have stunning holiday homes here in the picturesque villages known as The Hamptons, where they seek sanctuary from the hot temperatures and hectic schedules of New York City, three hours away. Always on trend, Kardashian sisters Kourtney and Khloe filmed their E! spinoff series Kourtney & Khloe take The Hamptons here in 2014, when the duo opened a boutique pop-up on the iconic Jobs Lane in Southampton Village.
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The Riviera Maya
Los Cabos, just a short flight from Los Angeles on the southern tip of Mexico's Baja peninsula, is where supermodel Cindy Crawford and her husband Randy Gerber have been holidaying, together with their good friend George Clooney, for two decades. So it made a natural choice for the best buddies' very own holiday homes, which they have designed and built in tandem, side-by-side. The name of the luxury compound, Casamigos – or House of Friends – is testament to the good times the trio, along now of course with George's wife Amal, enjoy there.
© Photo: FacebookGreece
Antiparos, Skopelos, Skiathos, Santorini
Greece has been the word for quite some time when it comes to celebrity hotspots. Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson are long-time fans of the mainland as much as its beautiful islands, often enjoying downtime in the birthplace of Rita's mother – they often spend their summer holiday in their house in the island Antiparos. So loyal to her roots is she, that the actress and her husband served as executive producers on the ABBA-based musical film starring Meryl Streep and Pierce Brosnan, Mamma Mia, which was shot on the picturesque islands of Skopelos and Skiathos. Other stars to enjoy the charms of the deep blue Aegean Sea include Kylie Minogue and supermodel Alessandra Ambrosio.
© Photo: iStockThe Caribbean
Barbados, Mustique and private islands
So inspired was he by his 2004 stint in paradise while filming Pirates of the Caribbean, that Johnny Depp bought his own paradise island – Little Hall's Pond Cay in the Bahamas. The 45-acre hideaway, which boasts six beautiful beaches and can be accessed only by boat, is where he and Amber Heard celebrated their ill-fated nuptials in 2014. Johnny's not the only one whose private island plays a key role in his life – Richard Branson's Necker Island in the British Virgin Islands is, as Richard has told HELLO!, "our spiritual home", and where his daughter Holly tied the knot in 2012. The island resort, which has belonged to the Bransons for more than 30 years and survived a fire back in 2011, offers panoramic views of the Caribbean, Atlantic and neighbouring islands – and can be hired for a sizable fee.
