Ten island-hopping routes for the perfect beach fortnight

Island-hopping fixes the central flaw of the beach holiday: the nagging feeling that a better cove is just over the horizon. With the right route it usually is. Each itinerary below fits a fortnight, runs mostly on scheduled ferries and short flights rather than chartered yachts, and gets better the further you get from the first port. Golden rule: never more than three islands in two weeks. Moving day always costs more of the holiday than you think.

The classic. Paros brings golden beaches and nightlife in careful doses; Naxos, among the greenest of the Cyclades, has a west coast strung with long sandy beaches such as Agios Prokopios and four-kilometre Plaka; and Milos finishes the trip with volcanic drama — the white moonscape of Sarakiniko and seventy-odd beaches in every colour rock comes in. Ferries link all three in season, but book summer tickets a couple of weeks ahead. June or September, always.

Start glamorous on Hvar, where yachts stack three-deep below the fortress, then catch the catamaran to Vis for the slow island Croatia kept to itself, and finish among the walled streets and vineyards of Korčula. Swimming is off pebbles and rock into water of absurd clarity. Split is the natural gateway, and Krilo catamarans and Jadrolinija boats sew the route together, with Hvar–Vis and Hvar–Korčula sailings running more often in summer.

Ignore the reputation; the quiet Balearics are hiding in plain sight. Begin in Mallorca's south-east, where pine-backed calas like Mondragó do a fine Caribbean impression, ferry from Alcúdia to Ciutadella for the wild coves of Menorca's Camí de Cavalls, then end on tiny Formentera, all bicycles and bleached-white sand. There's no direct boat from Menorca to Formentera: you go back via Mallorca and change in Ibiza, so that leg is a long travel day. Three islands, three tempos, one very relaxed fortnight.

Use Phuket for the airport and one good beach day, then boat out to Phi Phi, whose karst towers and green lagoons survive every crowd that comes to see them (Maya Bay itself closes every August and September). Finish on laid-back Ko Lanta, where long golden beaches face the sunset and the pace drops to a stroll. November to April is the window, when ferries run most often and the seas are flattest; from May to October many crossings are cut back or suspended.

Fly into Cebu, ferry to Bohol for the white sand of Panglao and the surreal Chocolate Hills inland, then hop to little Siquijor — waterfalls, healers, empty beaches and cheap, easy snorkelling. Fast ferries run from Cebu to Bohol, and OceanJet sails from Tagbilaran to Siquijor in under two hours, but schedules shift; build in slack. Visit between December and May, before the rains, and learn the word 'salamat' — you'll use it constantly.

The Caribbean as it was: tiny volcanic islands linked by an hour-long ferry from St Vincent to Bequia, water taxis and day charters, culminating in the Tobago Cays, an uninhabited cluster of islets inside Horseshoe Reef, a marine park (small daily fee) where you snorkel with turtles in shallow turquoise. Base yourself on friendly Bequia, splash out on a day sail past Mustique, and accept that your standards for 'clear water' are permanently ruined.

Short ferry legs connect three islands that share the same granite-boulder good looks but feel distinct: Mahé has the mountains and the markets, Praslin the primeval Vallée de Mai and Anse Lazio's perfect curve, and La Digue, where bikes and electric buggies do most of the getting around, saves the best for last — cycle to Anse Source d'Argent for one of the most photographed shorelines anywhere. April, May, October and November bring the calmest seas.

Seven volcanic islands off Sicily's north coast, sewn together by hydrofoil. Lipari makes the lively base, with pumice-pale beaches and a fortified old town; Salina is greener and slower, all caper farms and Malvasia vineyards; and Stromboli supplies the finale — an evening boat trip under the Sciara del Fuoco to watch the volcano flinging lava into the dark. Hiking above 290 metres needs a licensed guide, and the summit is often closed. Swimming is off black sand and warm rock into deep, clear blue. Liberty Lines hydrofoils reach Lipari from Milazzo in about an hour; go in June or September.

An Atlantic archipelago off West Africa where the beaches, the wind and the music all deserve top billing. Sal has the classic resort sands of Santa Maria and near-guaranteed sunshine; Boa Vista is essentially a desert island with fifty-five kilometres of beach and loggerhead turtles nesting from June to October; São Vicente adds Mindelo's live-music bars for the final act. Short internal flights link the trio; a Sal–Boa Vista ferry exists but is often cancelled, so don't rely on it. November to June is driest — and do develop a taste for grogue, the local rum.

Malaysia's east-coast islands are quieter than Thailand's: the tiny Perhentians for jungle-backed coves and turtles grazing just off the sand, Redang for powder-white beaches with resort comforts, and Tioman — further south — for waterfalls and house reefs you can snorkel before breakfast. There's no boat between them: each is reached from its own mainland jetty (Tioman from Mersing, about two hours), so allow a travel day for each move. Crucially, this coast runs on the opposite monsoon to much of Asia: come between March and September, when the South China Sea sits flat and clear; most Perhentian and Redang resorts close from around November to late February.