Investing in an overseas holiday home comes with a number of considerations. Not only must you make sure that you have completed all the necessary legalities whilst often navigating a new language, but picking the right spot to come back to each year is crucial to ensure that you and your family continue to enjoy the area and what it has to offer for years to come.
To determine the top countries to purchase a holiday home, Intasure has analysed the top holiday home locations by looking at Google searches for homes for sale in each country, and the cost of homes. The top destinations holiday home destinations were then ranked based on factors including:
- Number of hiking routes
- Amount of coastline
- Number of coastal bathing locations
- Probability of mismanaged plastic waste being emitted to ocean
- Number of snowsport resorts
- Kilometres of snowsport slopes
- Light pollution levels
- Number of inland bathing spots
The top countries to buy a holiday home overall, based on your interests
Switzerland takes the top spot as the top overall country to buy an overseas holiday home for hobby enthusiasts. 2,000 people search on Google for places to purchase a holiday home in the country [1]. The mountainous country benefits from a range of outdoor activities, including over 13,000 hiking trails, 356 ski resorts and its low light pollution makes it the perfect place to stargaze [2,3,4].
France takes the runner-up position with almost 14,000 people searching on Google for places to purchase a holiday home in the country [1]. The average cost of a home in France is considerably lower than its bordering neighbour, Switzerland. The price to buy per square metre comes in at £4,138.18 on average [5]. France is home to vast ski slopes, with over 10,000 kilometres of runs across its 248 resorts [3]. Additionally, the country has 2,075 coastal bathing spots and 1,286 inland bathing spots making it the ideal place if you like outdoor swimming [6].
Germany takes third position, as the top place to purchase a holiday home for hobbyists. The cost of a home in Germany is £4,264.57 per square meter on average [5]. The country appeals to hobbyists due to its outdoor activities including its 657 ski slopes, 37,036 walking trails and 1,292 wild swimming spots [3, 2,6].
The USA is named the top country to buy a holiday home for hikers
| Rank | Country | Number of hiking trails | Number of trail reviews | Average trail rating | Hiking Index Score |
| 1 | USA | 97,792 | 26,445,242 | 4.5 | 89 |
| 2 | UK | 31,729 | 1,700,253 | 4.5 | 86 |
| 3 | Canada | 26,396 | 2,986,400 | 4 | 63 |
| 4 | France | 36,388 | 717,810 | 4 | 63 |
| 5 | Germany | 37,036 | 201,064 | 4 | 62 |
| 6 | Croatia | 4,196 | 29,369 | 4.5 | 61 |
| 7 | Spain | 21,453 | 285,805 | 4 | 61 |
| 8 | Poland | 4,675 | 19,634 | 4.5 | 59 |
| 9 | Italy | 15,928 | 167,546 | 4 | 58 |
| 10 | Iceland | 595 | 54,656 | 4.5 | 57 |
When it comes to hiking, the USA takes the lead. This is unsurprising considering the country has 63 national parks, offering a range of hiking routes [7]. Dominating all other countries, the USA has 97,792 hiking trails available throughout the country [2]. On average, each walking route has been reviewed 270 times with the total number of reviews amounting to 26,445,242 [2]. Of these reviews, the routes scored 4.5 out of 5 highlighting the quality of the routes, including the views, terrain conditions and distance [2]. Additionally, the average property price in the USA will cost you £3,148 per square metre, making it affordable to purchase a holiday home [5].
While geographically the UK is 39 times smaller than the USA, it secures second place for buying a holiday home, if you like hiking [8]. Almost 2 million people have reviewed its 31,729 hiking routes, giving an average rating of 4.5 out of 5 [2]. Some of the most popular walking destinations where you’ll find an array of walking routes are: Glencoe, The Lake District, Northumberland, Snowdonia and the Yorkshire Moors [9] where it will cost you £4,385.72 per square metre to purchase a holiday home [5].
Canada takes third place, being a top contender for people looking to buy a holiday home surrounded by extensive walking routes. The country has 26,396 hiking routes that have attracted almost 3 million reviews, scoring on average 4 out of 5 [2]. With 3,700 people searching for holiday homes each month in Canada, the average cost of a home will cost you on average £4,636.16 [1,5].
USA ranks as the top country to buy a holiday home for winter sports lovers
| Rank | Country | Number of resorts | Km of slopes | Number of ski lifts | Average length of ski season | Ski & Snowboarding Index Score |
| 1 | USA | 700 | 14,059 | 3,837 | 5.5 | 95 |
| 2 | Switzerland | 356 | 7,032 | 1,905 | 6 | 93 |
| 3 | Austria | 442 | 7,271 | 2,635 | 5.5 | 91 |
| 4 | Canada | 292 | 4,023 | 885 | 6.5 | 89 |
| 5 | France | 248 | 10,092 | 3,116 | 5.5 | 88 |
| 6 | Italy | 284 | 5,725 | 1,832 | 5 | 85 |
| 7 | Japan | 565 | 3,095 | 1,850 | 4.5 | 84 |
| 8 | Germany | 657 | 1,320 | 1,353 | 4.5 | 82 |
| 9 | Sweden | 254 | 1,230 | 909 | 5.5 | 81 |
| 10 | Norway | 171 | 1,405 | 625 | 5.5 | 80 |
In top position with 700 resorts and an average ski season of 5.5 months, the USA is the top place to purchase a holiday home if you like snow sports [3,10]. In fact, 50 of the resorts that the USA offers are above 3,000 metres, with Colorado, Aspen and New Mexico home to the highest resorts [11]. Additionally, the USA has 14,059km of slopes with a season that lasts 5.5 months of the year [3,10]. For those interested in purchasing a holiday home next to the slopes, it will cost you on average £3,148 per square metre [5].
In second place, Switzerland is a great option for buying a holiday home. The country has 356 resorts offering 7,032km of slopes [3]. With the average length of a ski season being 6 months, prospective holiday homeowners will be able to enjoy the slopes for half the year [10]. For those interested in purchasing a holiday home here, it will cost you £11,897 per square metre [5].
Austria comes in third position, with holiday homeowners in the country having access to 442 ski resorts [3]. Similar to Switzerland, the country has 7,271km of slopes [3]. Its 2,635 ski lifts make it easy for you to access the mountains [3]. The cost of a home on average in Austria is £4,539.48 per square metre, making it just £200 more expensive than homes in the UK, on average [5].
Croatia is the top place to buy if you like the beach and ocean swimming
| Rank | Country | Amount of coastline | Number of coastal bathing locations | Probability of mismanaged plastic being emitted to ocean | Ocean swimming Index Score |
| 1 | Croatia | 5,835 | 894 | 0.00% | 85 |
| 2 | Italy | 7,600 | 4,855 | 0.88% | 73 |
| 3 | Spain | 4,964 | 1,994 | 0.36% | 72 |
| 4 | France | 3,427 | 2,075 | 0.56% | 70 |
| 5 | Greece | 13,676 | 1,728 | 0.91% | 69 |
| 6 | Germany | 2,389 | 999 | 0.26% | 67 |
| 7 | Norway | 83,281 | – | 0.00% | 66 |
| 8 | Finland | 1,250 | 78 | 0.00% | 64 |
| 9 | Denmark | 7,314 | 920 | 2.33% | 59 |
| 10 | Iceland | 4,970 | – | 0.00% | 59 |
Croatia tops the list for people looking for holiday homes by the sea. The country has 5,835km of coastline and 894 bathing spots with a 0% probability of mismanaged plastic waste being emitted into the waters [12, 6,13]. Additionally, properties in Croatia, on average, are half the price of properties in the UK. The average price per square metre to buy a house in Croatia is £2,139 [5].
Italy has been rated as the second top place to purchase a holiday home if you are into ocean swimming and being by the sea. In fact, 8,600 people search for second home properties in Italy on Google each month [1]. Its coastline spans 7,600km with 5,000 bathing spots [12, 6]. Additionally, properties in Italy are £2,683.54 per square metre, making it an affordable country to purchase a holiday home [5].
Spain takes third position with a coastline which is almost 5,000km long [12]. In fact, on average people search on Google for holiday homes in Spain almost 22,500 times a month, making it the most searched-for location for holiday homes overall [1]. In terms of the price of holiday homes in the country, these are similar to Italy. On Average, the cost of a square metre of a home in Spain will cost you £2,428 [5].
Derek Henry, Managing Director at Intasure commented: “Buying a holiday home abroad can be an expensive process, therefore future holiday homeowners must carefully consider where their ideal location is. While of course the price of homes in a country will play a part in your decision, personal preferences including the range of amenities nearby and the accessibility of beaches, mountains and attractions will be a deciding factor for many.
Holiday homeowners must also consider how they protect their property, including purchasing adequate holiday home insurance which can protect against damage and theft which is increasingly important as the home is unlikely to be occupied all year round.
Obtaining insurance in a foreign country can be challenging if you don’t speak the language, therefore working with a broker can help overcome the language barrier whilst finding you adequate cover that suits your needs. If there’s anything else you need, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.”
