Ten Things That Matter the Most
I used to have a thing called The Ten Things That Matter The Most That You May Not Have Thought Of. It was a PDF delivered by email when you signed up to the villa’s email list. It got such good feedback that I put it online, right here. It’s changed a bit since then, grown to be more than 10 things, and in 2026 it got a full re-write where I put each ‘thing’ on its own page to try to avoid the unreadable wall of text and make it a bit more clicky and interactive. The idea is still the same. If you’ve never stayed in a villa before there are a few things that could be important to you that you might not have thought of. Here’s my take on some of them. It all started with a conversation about a new car.
I asked a friend what she thought of her new car. Her answer? It’s brilliant. It steers really well and goes up hills much better than the old one.
For context the old car and new car were the same category, a small little run-around. The new one was German. The old one … wasn’t. And no, she’s not a car enthusiast.
Such a simple answer got my inner wannabe engineer thinking. There’s a lot beneath this answer that’s hidden. The new car steers well. Perhaps because it has better steering geometry and better suspension. Engineers have likely worked long and hard to design this. Then that better suspension has to be designed alongside the front wheel arch to make sure it isn’t intruding into the footwell and making the pedals harder to get to. Going up hills suggests more power … but from the same sized engine and with better fuel economy. This isn’t just a better engine, it’s a better gearbox that has been better optimised for the type of use the car will get. Perhaps this needs a better engine map to deliver the power when and where it’s needed rather than just having a figure to publish on an advert. Perhaps that engine map changes depending on how the car is being driven? Or maybe it uses the inclination sensor (for the hill start assist) to change the engine map to going-up-hill mode when it senses an incline. Marketing people love being able to say that they have 3bhp more than their competitors. But if that means the car struggles to go up a hill it’s all for nothing.
Villas are the same. There are some underlying things that don’t come out in the headlines but they make a big difference to how you feel while there and ultimately how this impacts your vacation. Things you don’t see, might not have thought of, but which matter the most …
South facing vs. north facing pools – be POSH
Is south facing better than north facing? And what has it got to do with the word POSH?
Pool water quality – Chlorine vs. Saline
You’ve heard mention of a saline pool, or saltwater pool. What is it and how does it work?
Pools, Decks, and Lanais – Is bigger better?
Does size matter? Spoiler alert! Yes!
Internet speed and WiFi coverage
When was the air conditioning last serviced
Is the Games Room in the Garage?
And why is this important?
Heaps of villas have converted their garage into a games room, or a cinema room. There are some fantastic conversion jobs. They look stunning on the photos and they look stunning in real life.
They all suffer from one big problem though.
Garages are not air conditioned.
In and either side of winter this isn’t always a big deal. When the temperature is in the 70s and there isn’t a lot of humidity being in a garage for a period of time is like being outside for a period of time.
Come the summer with the high humidity, no insulation in the roof space over the garage, the sun on the roof all day, garages can easily get to 100+ degrees with almost 100% humidity. They aren’t a nice environment to spend a lot of time in. And that’s before we get to the creep crawlies who find their way under the garage door.
The approach of putting fans into this space is … honestly it’s not great. Fans use energy so actually make the space hotter rather than cooler. Same reason as why you can’t air condition a kitchen by leaving the fridge door open. They blow air around and create a breeze but it’s hot, humid air.
Is it life or death? No. Does it matter if you imagine yourself spending time around a pool table? Yes, in the hotter times of the year it really does.