Perhaps you’re trying to beat those early booking parents at their own game, don’t want to spend swathes of the school break on long flights, or simply want to bag an Easter holiday that’s hassle-free — whatever your spring plans, we’ve sourced short-haul breaks in Europe and beyond that cut down on the faff and maximise the fun.
So ready your hand luggage, because we’ve picked Easter breaks at boutique and luxury hotels to suit your time limits, ranging from one to five hours of travel from UK airports.
AROUND ONE HOUR FROM THE UK
The Blonde Hedgehog
Alderney
Getting there Fly direct to Alderney from Southampton with Aurigny in around 40 minutes. Alternatively, a ferry runs direct from Guernsey if you’re hopping across the Channel Islands, but it takes a more leisurely 90 minutes.
At the hotel Alderney outpost The Blonde Hedgehog is named after the island’s protected critters, which are very active in spring; so you’ll arrive at the ideal time for after-sundown sightings. All rooms are burrow-cosy, and for family Easter breaks, the hotel has an 18th-century cottage and farmhouse you can book exclusively, both colourfully decorated, each with three bedrooms and outdoor space.
The holiday is when the island’s farms and fields are at their most bounteous, giving the chef a lot to work with for Easter lunches — kids have both their own regular and brunch menus to choose from. And days are spent clambering over historic forts, cycling along wild stretches of shore, following the Womble trail or riding the island’s miniature train.
Easter treats On Easter Monday, the island’s residents trawl the beaches hunting the eggs of the elusive ‘chocolate shark’, while also tracking and recording the real-egg cases of sharks and rays swimming off the coast.
Grand Powers
Paris
Getting there Flights from London hubs arrive in Paris in just over an hour; travel from Manchester and Birmingham takes around 90 minutes. Or choose the eco-friendly route on the Eurostar train, which bumps the journey time up to two hours.
At the hotel Grand Powers hotel may be more health-conscious then your usual Parisian hideaway, with a vegetarian- and vegan-focused menu in the restaurant and yoga mats placed encouragingly in each room. But you won’t be deprived of chocolat, with an Easter-egg hunt for kids and some sugary surprises awaiting in your room. The hotel will also be sweetly decorated with daffodils, bunny motifs and painted eggs.
Rooms are dressed in pastels becoming of an Easter bonnet, the spa’s hammam and Holidermie treatments will keep you spring-chicken fresh, and the hotel’s commitment to environmental and community support (with initiatives running from beehive sponsorship and donating bath products to the homeless to supporting a local make-a-wish charity) makes any stay here soul-lifting.
Easter treats The Easter Bunny isn’t a big part of the Pâques festivities in France (eggs are dropped by flying church bells here, according to legend…), but Paris gets into the spirit of things with egg hunts in the Parc André Citroën, Rodin Museum and more; whimsical creations by chocolatiers (Pierre Hermé, Fauchon and Jean-Paul Hévin are among the most imaginative); and evocative church services — go trad at Sacré-Coeur or gospel at Saint-Sulpice Church.
AROUND TWO HOURS FROM THE UK
Château Léognan
Bordeaux
Getting there The quickest route to the Dordogne is from London Gatwick to Bordeaux airport, which takes less than two hours.
At the hotel Château Léognan is your classic, turreted stay in the Dordogne, where rooms come with a lavish muralled feature wall and laden chandelier as standard. But Easter is time to take advantage of the hotel’s more bucolic lodgings: ‘glamping’ tents and stilted lodges set in the leafy grounds. It’s the season when cherry blossoms and orchids colour the landscape vividly, and wild deer, boar, foxes and pine martens might show off their new broods.
Families and twosomes alike will feel like they’re in a fairytale, with carriage rides or jaunts in the hotel’s Triumph car; continuing when they’re being spoiled in the spa (there are dedicated treatments for kids, too).
Easter treats Children aged five and up can roam the grounds trying to spot any spring babies that may have arrived; while parents can enjoy wine and chocolate tastings. Bordeaux is a 40-minute drive away — here kids can search for eggs at the CAPC Modern Art Museum, and alfresco treasure hunts are held in the city’s parks.
De Durgerdam
Amsterdam
Getting there Whether you’re flying to Amsterdam Schiphol from Bristol, London or Edinburgh, flight times are around 90 minutes. The village of Durgerdam is just 25 kilometres (a 20-minute taxi ride) from the city once you land.
At the hotel De Durgerdam is only a 15-minute drive from central Amsterdam, but it feels worlds away; the namesake lakeside fishing hamlet is a leafy idyll, with a strip of clapboard cottages and dinky church — a peaceful and playful spot for spring breaks. Wholesome fun, such as swimming and sailing in coots, gentle bike rides, frolicking in flowering meadows and more awaits; but the very-well-regarded De Mark restaurant has fluffy throws over its chairs and the lounge has a fireplace should nights be chilly.
It’s an opportunity to see a different, fresher side to the ’Dam, and sleep in quarters dressed and lit like a Dutch masterpiece.
Easter treats The hotel is hosting a special brunch over the long Easter weekend, and guests staying over the holiday will have a few seasonal surprises to look forward to. Day trip out to Keukenhof Gardens to see freshly blooming tulips and maybe meet the Easter Bunny, who’ll be popping up with treats for all. Party-seekers may prefer Milkshake, Ministry of Sound’s Easterdam weekender, with club nights from 21–24 March.
AROUND THREE HOURS FROM THE UK
Sublime Comporta
Comporta
Getting there You’ll need to fly into Lisbon’s Humberto Delgado Airport; direct flights arrive from London, Bristol, Manchester and Edinburgh, and take two-and-a-half to three hours. From there the hotel is around an hour’s drive.
At the hotel Portugal’s insider-secret beach spot Comporta isn’t quite so hush-hush these days, but there are pockets of peace and keep-them-to-yourselves sands still to be found. Sublime Comporta, a remote coastal resort, is such a haven, with breezy, blue-and-white rooms and cabin-style villas; pools for kids and adults; sustainable dining (and a chef’s table with fiery theatrics), and spa spoiling to hammer home the holism.
Kids will love playing tennis, riding bikes and attending special yoga classes; and in spring you may catch the first of the dolphin sightings off the Atlantic coast and enjoy picnics in the grounds. And babysitters can step in when the grown-ups attend a wine tasting or book a private barman and chef for a special night in.
Easter treats Cookie-making classes are held on-site where we imagine a few sugar-sweet chicks and rabbits will be crafted.
Marbella Club
Marbella
Getting there The closest airport to the hotel is Málaga, which happens to be easily accessible from all major UK hubs. From Bristol, London, Birmingham or Liverpool, expect a three-hour journey; add an extra half hour if arriving from Scotland or Northern Ireland. After you’ve landed, the hotel is around a 30-minute drive.
At the hotel Once the summer residence and social hub of Prince Alfonso de Hohenlohe, Marbella Club’s playboy lavishness can now be enjoyed by lucky guests. Luxuriate in retro-fabulous suites and villas, hobnob with the jetset at the beach club, clink champagne glasses by the fire in Rudi’s lounge…
Your little princes and princesses will get the royal treatment too at the 5,000-square-metre kids’ club, a mini village with an aroma lab, kitchen, garden, music and dance studio, adventure park, pool and the Seahorse Hotel, designed to educate little ones about sustainability.
Easter treats There’s a flurry of fun for Easter: an egg hunt at the kids’ club, a special family day with workshops and themed activities, and on Easter Sunday there’ll be a bountiful buffet with spring eats at the Beach Club.
AROUND FOUR HOURS FROM THE UK
Nobu Hotel Marrakech
Marrakech
Getting there Flight times from London Gatwick or Stansted to Marrakech Menara are the quickest at around three-and-a-half hours; however, flights from Manchester, Birmingham, Newcastle and Liverpool are only around 10 to 20 minutes longer. Flights from Scotland and Northern Ireland are around four hours; there are no direct flights from Wales.
At the hotel Veer away from the traditional this Easter, swapping a roast for almond-crusted lamb in teriyaki sauce, and a Lindt bunny for a chocolate bento box with fondant and matcha ice-cream. Nobu Hotel Marrakech brings cool Asian minimalism to the Red City, fusing Marrakshi embellishment with Zen spareness as tastily as it does Peruvian and Japanese cuisines in its iconic restaurant.
This is an Easter break for couples wanting to tuck themselves away and enjoy guaranteed clement weather. Nobu obliges on both fronts, with a large roof terrace where you can soak in the sun and a 2,000-square-metre spa that has a beauty salon, hairdressers, sauna and steam cabin alongside bi-continental treatments.
Easter treats Marrakech in April has particularly pleasant temperatures and kicks off with the jubilant celebrations of Eid Mubarak: street performances and decorations, shared-out sweet treats (rose-shaped chebakia pastries, ‘gazelle-horn’ cookies…) and lavish feasts. Otherwise, it’s one of the best times to go adventuring in the Palmeraie’s leafy expanses by quad bike or camel, or hike into the Atlas Mountains.
Verdura Resort
Sicily
Getting there The quickest direct route is from London Stansted to Palermo, which takes just under three hours; the hotel’s a 90-minute drive from there. From other major UK hubs, you’ll need to stop over in Pisa, which adds a couple of hours onto the journey.
At the hotel Verdura Resort has Rocco Forte’s innate refinement and indulgent Mediterranean living (with several shoreside trattorias, including its own pizzeria; an Irene Forte medi-spa; tennis and padel club; diving centre…). And it’s wonderfully cosseting for little ones — the Verdùland kids’ club (named for Verdù, its hedgehog mascot) is a wonderland of play, with dynamic activities for babes-in-arms to teens.
Suffice to say, it’s already an exciting proposition; come Easter, it’s even more of a thrill ride. Experts in football, rhythm gymnastics and tennis host masterclasses; local tours include authentic seasonal lunches and introductions to local traditions; and clubs hold activities beyond the usual, such as learning to make TikTok videos, understanding your emotions through Pixar film Inside Out, and mocktail making. While all this ensues, parents can partake in special wine and spa events and workshops.
Easter treats Egg hunts and painting, wreath-making, decorating with recycled materials, family fun days: the hotel goes all out with its Pasquetta-onwards pastimes.
AROUND FIVE HOURS FROM THE UK
Amirandes, A Grecotel Resort
Crete
Getting there Flights from UK hubs, such as London, Manchester, Newcastle, Liverpool and Leeds, to Crete’s Heraklion Airport all hover around the four-hour mark. Once you’ve landed, the hotel is a 15-minute drive.
At the hotel Amirandes feels more like your own empire than a resort, with its colonnaded architecture; floating, palm-flanked pavilions; vast pool and lagoon; and team of whim-fulfilling staff. It’s a place of sexy montages: you sunning yourself on a yacht then off-roading into the mountains; later grooving slo-mo at a Full Moon Party or curled up watching a film beneath the stars.
There’s U-rated fun too at Grecoland, the resort’s kids’ club; conscientious and cultural activities — Greek dancing, nature outings, fun on the farm — are punctuated with arts and crafts and group games. And family days out at Crete’s ancient ruins, surreally beautiful beaches and artisan workshops are legion enough to warrant several return trips.
Easter treats Get some insight into authentic Orthodox Easter rituals and celebrations: bedecking epitafios (or icons) with flowers at a local church, decorating candles for participation in a Resurrection service, feasting on spit-roasted lamb and competing in egg-cracking contests.
Six Senses Kocataş Mansions
Istanbul
Getting there Flights from most major hubs in England to Istanbul Airport will take around four hours; those from Scotland and Northern Ireland will take between four and five hours, but be aware that there are limited travel dates from those hubs. The hotel is about a 40-minute drive once you land.
At the hotel Ottoman-era grandeur awaits at Bosphorus-side Six Senses Kocataş Mansions, formerly the residence of a minister of justice, now your pleasure pad for a cracking Easter break. The elegantly Eurasian suites — with a Belle Époque air to them and many with blue, blue strait views — are your base for spa healing in a hundred-year-old building, tucking into gourmet kebabs and Turkish pastries, or jaunting off on the hotel’s private boat.
Younger guests can discover how to cook and ferment, and learn through sustainability-focused activities (forays into the organic garden and Earth Lab) with the Grow With Six Senses programme.
Easter treats The city’s Orthodox churches hold midnight liturgies during Holy Week, but Easter’s not all so sombre in Istanbul — plump, sweet tsoureki breads tempt from bakery windows; succulent slow-roasted lamb dominates menus; and folk dancers up the energy in ancient squares.
And we’re on a roll, with our collection of hotels for the Easter bank holiday and special spring-break offers
