Treasured islands

1. MYKONOS, Greece
On many bucket lists for a reason, this Cyclades island is Miami without the vice. The sunbathing and partying are equally hectic. And then there is Delos nearby. And gliteratti to spot among the good life and great eats. And really, it&rsquos not all that expensive, even Stay at either the cascading caves of Cavo Tagoo (from &euro414 for rooms with pools cavotagoo.gr), for classy local colour and a superb spa with underground heated pool, or the very minimalist-stylish Bill & Coo (from &euro 295 for rooms with sundecks bill-coo-hotel.com &mdash remember the movie). And of course both wrap their restaurants around their (main) pool, to take advantage of the blues (and show of A-list guests)

2. ARIARA ISLAND, Philippines
An island all to yourself, complete with dive instructor and fully crewed private yacht, and big enough to bring your friends to show off. The Ariara Island Resort is exclusive-use for minimum 7 nights only (from $475 per person for groups of 15, and climbing for fewer ariaraisland.com), and the accommodation&rsquos delightfully designed by celebrated Filipino architect Jorge Yulo. The chef is Swiss and operates her own dairy farm in Manila, but does a mean lechon (spit-roasted pig) along with other Euro-Asian eats.

3. HAMILTON ISLAND, Australia
Yachting mecca is here, come Whitehaven Day in August. It&rsquos on the Great Barrier Reef, part of the Whitsunday Islands. It&rsquos touristy, but you won&rsquot feel too jostled at the private, five-room Ala Moana &lsquobeach house&rsquo (from A$5,500 per night alamoana.com.au). It is as spec&shytacular as its surroundings, and comes with its own yacht and skipper, no worries.

 4. TSARABANJINA, Madagascar 
The very best diving site in Madagascar is just off the northern coast of the main island. Burial site of the Sakalava kings of the Mitsio archipelago (their people still bring offerings of money, honey...and rum), Tsarabanjina is a small and sacred little islet. Seabirds roost by the flockful on the Quatre Freres rocks. The 25 unique, thatched bungalows (Constance Tsarabanjina from &euro 427 tsarabanjina.constancehotels.com) lord it over white sand beaches in barefoot luxury.

 5. SONG SAA
Koh Rong archipelago, Cambodia
Some half an hour off the mainland, the twin &lsquosweet&shyheart&rsquo islands make a great honeymoon destination. A footbridge exists, and wi-fi. Paved roads and ATMs are not to be expected, however. The new Song Saa resort (from $1,336 songsaa.com) corralls Koh Ouen and Koh &nbspBong under its private umbrellas, with villas over water, on sand and in jungle featuring driftwood and salvaged wood. Surprisingly environment conscious (they have established their own marine reserve of 1 million sq m) and startlingly luxurious after the launchpad of backpacker town Sihanoukville. There are a score of desert islands around to explore, besides local fishing villages. And the food is fantastic.

 6. RANDHELI, Maldives
Last year&rsquos parting gift to the tourist season of this most touristy of honeymoon destinations was the &uumlber-fashionable Cheval Blanc resort (Cheval Blanc Randheli tariff on application only randheli.chevalblanc.com), the world&rsquos second, on the Noonu Atoll. So exclusive and exciting that it has even inspired a luxury timepiece from Hublot&mdashthe Oceanographic 4000, exclusively available on site and luminous at 4,000m underwater The spa of&shyfers a &lsquosun ritual&rsquo and there is yoga on the beach&hellipby moonlight. Also excellent accessories are the edibles, from Japanese to Iberian, prepared by a Michelin-starred chef.

7. CHIOS, Greece
Old as chewing gum &mdash or gum mastic, anyway &mdash Chios also boasts heritage status for its medieval-to-Byzantine historic landmarks. It lays claim to being the birthplace of Homer, and has certainly been the workplace of Saracene pirates in later years. Art lovers and book&shyworms may expect special treats while sightseeing here. Easter brings unusual celebrations, and white sand and pebbles beckon year round. Treat yourself to a stay at Argentikon&rsquos luxury suites (from &euro 380 argentikon/gr), founded 1550 by Genovese nobility. Please bring us back a bowl of that more-ish mas&shytiha spoon sweet, thanks.

8. MOTU TETARAIRE, French Polynesia
In the Tuamotus, the world&rsquos largest chain of atolls, Motu Teta (&euro 533 per person for a group of six, and climbing yourdreamisland.com) is a private haven-on-a-lagoon in the relatively populous Rangiroa atoll. Exclusively sleeping eight guests&mdashor two&mdashit comes with plenty of watersports gear and sits too far for wi-fi. Staff sleep on the other side of the Motu Tetaraire island.

9. PARROT CAY BY COMO, Turks and Caicos
A mile-long beach on a private island resort with a Como Shambhala spa makes for rare-ish boast&shying rights among friends (from $500 comohotels.com/parrotcay). Keith Richards, Bruce Willis and Donna Karan own private residences near the resort, but they are unlikely to come eavesdrop&shyping on you lovebirds on the other hand, some of these estates can be rented while the owners are away on business. Excellent Asian and Ital&shyian eats make an unexpected extra attraction.

10. VANUA LEVU, Fiji
Here&rsquos a good reason to go globetrotting just to put up in a coconut plantation all-inclusive rates at the Jean-Michel Costeau Resort (from $895 fijiresort.com) include nanny services for the babes in arms and lo&shycal buddies to show the older kids around Cultural immersion for real &mdash and they won&rsquot be interrupt&shying your open-air spa treatment beachside or even your cocktails poolside (there are kiddie and family pools, not to worry). Also, the place has some serious conservation creds (but of course), with the in-house marine biologist guiding reef protection and giant clam breeding programmes, besides the architectural and operational sustainability. And oh yes, there&rsquos the dive centre. And a pearl farm offsite. Do hang around for the weekly Lovo feast as well.

11. CAYO ESPANTO , Belize
Yes, yes, we&rsquore getting predictable luxurious private island, yet again, yes. However, Belize &mdash a key part of the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor Now that&rsquos worth crowing about, we think. Also Mayan cultures and ruins. As for the tiny seven villa resort (from $1,495 aprivateisland.com), it&rsquos just three miles from San Pedro, and includes a glass-bottomed over-water villa. Go ahead and rent the whole place for your 18 guests. Each villa gets its own piece of beach. There&rsquos no restaurant&mdashthe chef and houseman collude to serve what you want, where you want it, whenever you want to eat.

12. FREGATE ISLAND, Seychelles
A carbon-neutral tropical paradise of teak-and-ma&shyhogany villas (from &euro 1,463 fregate.com) four degrees south of the Equator, with private pools, treehouse dining on African and Creole cuisines and a spa all supplied by island-grown produce. Seri&shyous green creds protecting the Seychelles magpie robin and a hundred other tropical birds, home to Aldabra tor&shytoises and hawksbill turtles and the Seychelles terrapin, and an indigenous forest renewed with tens of thou&shysands of plantings. If you can ask for more, we must throw in our Turkish towels.

13. KOH YAO NOI, Thailand
Together with twin Koh Yao Yai, this island is part of the Ao Phang-Nga National Marine Park, with mountains and marine waterfronts, and Muslim fishing villages &mdash near Phuket, but way away from the mad&shyding crowds. The island is all mangrove on one side, all beach on the other. Divine, really. Especially when you add in the Six Senses Resort (from THB 12,795 sixsenses.com) and the small, sharp little limestone islands in easy kayaking distance.

14. HAYMAN ISLAND, Australia
The northernmost of the Whitsunday Islands has Australia&rsquos most-awarded luxury resort the Hayman Island Resort (from A$730 hayman.com.au), what else Rooms, suites, penthouses, villas, pools, gardens, rainforest, beach &mdash take your pick. There&rsquos a rather celebrated Chocolate Room and an excellent wine cellar, the 12-course Chef&rsquos Bench dinner is served in the main kitchen, and a new wing is being added when the resort reopens in July as a One&ampOnly.

15. FOGO ISLAND, Canada
In Newfoundland, the timber-clad Fogo Island Inn (and artists&rsquo studios) sits on stilts with a treasury of local craftsmanship and interna&shytional modern design and architecture ($550 onwards fogoislandinn.ca), manned by &lsquocommu&shynity hosts&rsquo and with workshops by the resident artists. Boatmakers and quilters have contrib&shyuted the furniture and furnishings. All profits go back to the local community, making for a heartwarming experience among the icebergs and humpback whales. There are perfor&shymances by the World&rsquos End Theatre Company, and a rowing race in July-August as well as the Brimstone Head Folk Festival in August. Eats are fished, foraged and farmed locally. A recent oil leaking wreckage means your tourism dollars will be particularly welcome.

16. TIOMAN ISLAND, Malaysia
Dreamy location of the South Pacific, Tioman&rsquos no secret. But the treehouses-in-the-rainforest intimacy of Japamala Resort (from RM 510 japamalaresorts.com) is rather off the beaten track. And where better to make base for your exploration of Tioman&rsquos natural treasures Japamala does its home justice too, blending your suite space seamlessly into the outdoors, both sea and jungle. The 13 accommodations were built around the existing landscape, so boulders crop up indoors and elevated walkways and bridges wind your steps across to your room. Even the pool curves around a waterfall. There&rsquos an Italian eatery by the jetty, while the main restaurant serves Thai and Vietnamese in style.

17. LIZARD ISLAND, Australia
A whole national park to yourself That&rsquos almost the deal with the Lizard Island Resort (from A$1,519 lizardisland.com.au), because the island is the 1,000-hectare-plus park. Right on the Great Barrier Reef, with 24 beaches, diving at the famous Cod Hole and the famous game fishing at the Ribbon Reefs.

18. AEOLIAN ISLANDS, Sicily
If the Hotel Raya (from $380 hotelraya.it) in exclusive little Panarea proves too preten&shytious for you, make Salina, setting of Il Pos&shytino, your base camp to explore the seven volcanic sisters and stay in a family-run farmhouse for authenticity, with a contem&shyporary touch. The Hotel Signum (from &euro 50 per person hotelsignum.it) is not just a luxe bargain if you are early and lucky, but especially salubrious too, with geothermic spa treatments offered by the Salus Per Aquam (SPA) on a bed of rose salt or in a copper tub, fed by natural hot springs, or an ice massage. Even the bathroom basins are roughhewn blocks of Carrera marble. Rooms also boast private balconies and ter&shyraces. The island&rsquos sweet wine is famous, as are the capers. And the hotel&rsquos infinity pool looks quietly to Stromboli. 

19. KANGAROO ISLAND, Australia
Only Tasmania and Melville are bigger than this Aussie island near Adelaide. The Ab&shyoriginal people call it the Isle of the Dead, but it is also known for its rock lobster fisher&shyies and Ligurian honeybees, sea lions and sand dunes, and more. The place to lodge is, well, the Southern Ocean Lodge (from A$1,050 southernoceanlodge.com.au) &mdash a stunning modernist sculpture on a clifftop overlooking Hanson Bay and with glass walls giving both seawards and inland. Unusually for luxe digs, staff are on first-name basis with the guests

20. CON DAO ISLANDS, Vietnam
This archipelago off the Vietnamese mainland is still largely unspoilt &mdash but being signposted fast by those in the know The national park makes for a rare opportunity to come within flipper&rsquos lengths of a mer&shymaid &mdash or dugong &mdash as well as crab-eating macaques and black squirrels. The Six Senses (from $1,790 sixsenses.com) villas with private pools are the way to stay, of course. There&rsquos even a golf course &mdash with biode&shygradable balls that release fish food as apology for conking any marine inhabitants on the head. Plenty of options for eating for the guests too, with the local cuisine particularly authentic.