A clean stretch of sand to yourself, some soft blue waves to snorkel in and a tasty beachside restaurant for when your tanning time is over, with authentic food and a waiter who hails from down the road rather than down under. Doesn’t sound like too much to ask, does it? But the idyllic Mediterranean escape we all dream about is becoming more and more difficult to find.

Don’t despair, however — this holiday holy grail can still be yours. We’ve found a fistful of emerging destinations where it’s possible to escape the crowds, from western Portugal to eastern Greece. These are Europe’s rising stars, and they will more than match up to your mind’s-eye view of the Med: unspoilt coastlines, authentic interiors and a pace of life that’s as lazy as the skies are blue. They won’t be undiscovered for long, though — so get them now, before they’re hot.

Unless otherwise stated, package prices are per person, based on two sharing

The Pelion

Why? Because it’s gorgeous. Dramatic, idyllic and up to its ancient eyeballs in myth, 5,400ft Mount Pelion trails into the Aegean like a giant Christmas stocking. Some of the most beautiful villages in Greece bulge from its folds, tucked in among forests, brooks and ravishing beaches. The gods themselves used to up sticks from Olympus to spend summer here, and some of their fairy dust still lingers. Modern Greeks know this, and have been coming for years.

For the rest of us, the Pelion was just too hard to reach — until 2000, when charter flights to Volos put it on the UK radar screen. For sheer authentic Greekness, it’s destined to become the new Cephalonia — and, best of all, conservation laws should protect the Pelion from ever going mass-market.

Where to holiday: the resorts of Horefto, Agios Ioannis and Damouchari are irresistible, loomed over by cliffs and immersed in orchards. Then there are the softer shores of the Pagasitic Gulf, where you’ll find low-key bolt holes such as Afissos, Horto and Milina — and sunsets so romantic, they’re almost corny.

The essential Pelion, though, is in the mountains. Merchants’ mansions, lavish churches and sculpted fountains make villages such as Makrinitsa, Tsangaradha, Vizitsa and Kissos living museums of vernacular art. Many of the old mansions have been converted into hotels: two lovely examples are the five-room Kastanies, in Tsangaradha (00 30-24260 49135; doubles £65), and the Arhontiko Athanasaki, near Makrinitsa (24280 99235, www.athanasaki.com; doubles £50). Vizitsa's Glorious Peleys Castle (24230 86671, www.glorious.gr) is better still - a fortified house from 1791, with 11 superb rooms from £93 for two.

Restaurants on the Pelion tend to be informal, with tables spread under the trees or by the sea. You'll struggle to pay more than £20 for the works - usually including that day's catch. Try Dipnosofistis (24260 49825), in Tsangaradha, for great wine, food and music.

Get busy: the Pelion is perfect for doing nothing at all. But the next best activity here must be messing about in a boat - Sunsail (0870 777 0313, www.sunsail.com) has a base in Milina and offers bareboat charter and flotilla weeks.

Many of the cobbled mule tracks between villages have been restored for walking: pick up the 1:50,000 Pelion map (Road Editions) locally
or get hold of Walks in Pilion by Lance Chilton (£7.50; www.marengowalks.com). In summer, you can take a scenic 90-minute steam-train ride from Kato Lechonia to Milies (www.pilion.net/railway), stop for a lazy lunch, then chug back.

Getting there: there are summer charters to Volos from Birmingham, Bristol, Gatwick and Manchester. Charter Flight Centre (0845 045 0153, www.charterflights.co.uk) has flights from Gatwick from £299. Holiday Autos (0870 400 0099, www.holidayautos.co.uk) has a week's inclusive car hire from £145.

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