Headline weekly rate.
The advertised price. Usually 55 to 75% of what you will actually pay. Almost always negotiable in shoulder season, almost never in peak.
The headline rate is rarely the price. Eighty cost guides across 60 destinations, refreshed every 90 days, with the line items the listings leave out.
The price on the listing is not the price. The chef is extra. The staff gratuity is extra. The security deposit is sometimes returned in full and sometimes not. Service charges, government taxes, and destination fees are sometimes 8% on top and sometimes 22%. The deposit is sometimes 30% on booking and sometimes 50%. None of this is in the headline rate.
This section is the math. Every destination has a cost guide that includes: peak season range, shoulder season range, off season range, what is and is not included in the typical rate, the average chef cost per day, the average staff gratuity, the deposit structure, the cancellation terms, and the line items that are quietly added at booking.
We update prices quarterly. Specific villa prices live on the individual villa pages, where the cost is whatever the platform shows on the day. The destination-level cost data is the framework you use to know if the platform price is fair.
Last full refresh: May 2026. Next refresh: August 2026.
Every luxury villa invoice contains a version of these. The numbers shift by destination. The structure does not.
The advertised price. Usually 55 to 75% of what you will actually pay. Almost always negotiable in shoulder season, almost never in peak.
Eight to 12% on Mediterranean rentals, 15 to 18% on Caribbean. Some platforms bury it. Some show it. Always ask before the deposit clears.
Greece adds 13%. France adds 20%. St Barts adds 5%. Italy varies by region. Bali charges a flat $20 per visitor at the airport.
Six hundred to $1,500 per staff member per week, paid in cash on the last day. Two to four staff is standard on a six-bedroom villa.
Six hundred to $1,200 per day, plus food at cost. Most villas push the in-house option. In most destinations the independent chef is a better cook for the same money.
Five thousand to $25,000, refundable. The return process is where bad management companies clip a few hundred. Pay by card if the platform allows it.
A six-bedroom villa, peak week, with two staff included. Before chef and gratuity. Verified against current platform listings, May 2026.
| Destination | Peak week (6BR) | Shoulder week | What pushes it up |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mykonos, Greece | $14,000 to $28,000 | $9,500 to $18,000 | Aleomandra sea views |
| St Barts, Caribbean | $22,000 to $55,000 | $12,000 to $24,000 | New Year’s seven-week premium |
| Tuscany, Italy | $11,000 to $24,000 | $7,500 to $14,000 | Cook included, larger estates |
| Provence, France | $12,000 to $26,000 | $8,000 to $15,000 | Three-week minimum stays |
| Mallorca, Spain | $10,000 to $22,000 | $6,500 to $13,000 | North coast sea-front |
| Bali, Indonesia | $6,000 to $16,000 | $4,000 to $9,500 | Bukit cliff position |
| Costa Smeralda, Sardinia | $28,000 to $80,000 | $14,000 to $34,000 | Pevero beach proximity |
| Hamptons, NY | $25,000 to $65,000 | $10,000 to $22,000 | August premium, oceanfront |
| Aspen, Colorado | $30,000 to $90,000 | $8,000 to $18,000 | Christmas and Presidents’ week |
Rates as of May 2026. Before service charge, taxes, chef, and gratuity. Source: platform listings and direct management company quotes.
Each guide covers peak, shoulder, and off-season ranges by bedroom count, plus the local rules on taxes, deposits, and staff gratuities.
The 11.7 percent Massachusetts lodging tax, the ferry-or-rent car question, and what a six-bedroom Cliff house costs across the August peak.
GreecePeak vs shoulder. The chef trap. What 184 villas actually cost in 2026.
CaribbeanThe seven-week New Year premium. What a Pointe Milou six-bedroom costs across the December to March window.
ItalyChianti, Val d’Orcia, the Maremma coast. Why the cook is rarely an extra in Tuscany.
FranceThe three-week minimum stay norm and why the per-night number drops below the Côte d’Azur.
IndonesiaThe lowest absolute ceiling on this site. What a five-bedroom Canggu or Uluwatu villa runs on a peak week.
SardiniaThe most expensive square meter in the Mediterranean. August premiums and why the shoulder is a different price ladder.
ThailandThe best value in this guide. Why a staffed four-bedroom costs half the St Barts equivalent, and when the monsoon cuts the rate.
ThailandBelow Phuket, with the opposite rain calendar. Why November is the wettest month and February the value the brochures miss.
SpainThe widest spread on the Med. From Nueva Andalucía golf villas to La Zagaleta estates, and why the address sets the price.
GreeceCycladic quality at a third under Mykonos. Elounda waterfront against the Chania hills, and why the shoulders shine.
PortugalThe golden triangle and the 6 percent VAT, the lowest accommodation rate here. Quinta do Lago against the western coast.
South AfricaThe strongest value in the luxury tier, dollar for dollar. The Atlantic Seaboard bands, and why backup power matters more than the rate.
Indian OceanThe highest entry point of any beach market here. Why scarce standalone villas set the rate, and when the sea is calmest.
Indian OceanThe only market with two peaks. The west coast against the north, and the cyclone clause that belongs in the contract.
CaribbeanWhy the boat is half the budget. The 10 percent accommodation tax, the private-island spread, and what Virgin Gorda runs over New Year.
CaribbeanThe Piton view priced by the night. The 7 percent VAT, the per-night tourism levy, and where the premium sits near Soufrière.
BahamasThe pink-sand premium, about 30 percent over the bay side. The 10 percent Bahamas VAT and the golf-cart line every week carries.
PortugalRestraint, not square footage, and August doubles the price. The 6 percent VAT, no city tax, and why June is the value week.
EnglandTwo apexes and a VAT line that depends on who owns the house. Why the indoor pool matters more than the extra bedroom.
United StatesLegal short-term rentals are scarce, which holds the floor high. The 13 percent occupancy tax and the harvest apex.
New ZealandA winter ski apex and a New Year spike, not one peak. The 15 percent GST in the rate and the lakefront premium.
FranceThe catered chalet, chef and host in the rate. The 10 percent VAT, the taxe de séjour, and the walk-to-lift premium.
FranceThe Porto-Vecchio south against the Balagne value coast, August apex. The 10 percent serviced-let VAT and the Corsica tourist surcharge.
GreecePorto Heli and Costa Navarino against the Mani, by road from Athens. The 13 percent VAT and the €15 climate fee in the total.
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“Tuscany, eight adults, second week of June, full staff, pool: $14,000 to $24,000 for 7 nights.”
Shoulder-week math against the same villa, same group, two weeks apart.
Per-couple costs once you split the bill across the house.
The real number difference between the in-house chef and an independent chef.
Fifteen guides on what is added after the deposit clears. Read these before, not after.
The norms in Mykonos, the norms in Tuscany, the norms in St Barts. What the staff actually expect, and what to put in the envelope.
DepositsHow the deposit is held by country, card hold against escrow, and the contract clauses that get all of it back.
CateringDay rate, food at cost, the gratuity by region, and when the in-house chef beats booking your own.
TaxesGreece, France, Italy, the Caribbean. Which government takes what, and the serviced-versus-bare rule that triggers it.
CleaningEnd-of-stay against daily housekeeping, what is bundled on a staffed villa, and how the fee scales with the house.
TransportDay rate by region, the airport transfer, and when a hire car for daytime beats a standing driver all week.
Yacht & villaThe charter base rate against the all-in, the APA and the VAT, and when a day charter beats a full crewed week.
ConciergePre-arrival shopping, airport meet-and-greet, boat charters. The flat fees and the percentage markups.
CancellationsPlum Guide vs Onefinestay vs Vrbo vs the direct management company. Who refunds what, and when.
Worked budgets for the trips people plan around, and the math behind the choices that move the bill.
From $40,000 for 30 guests to $250,000 for a full-production 100. The line items, the planner fee, three worked budgets.
Honeymoon$9,000 in Bali, $25,000 in the Caribbean, $50,000-plus in the Maldives. The two-person all-in by region.
ReunionAbout $1,800 a head for 16, before staff. The per-person math by group size, and one estate against two villas.
The mathA villa wins once you fill about four rooms. The per-night comparison by group size, and what each side hides.
SeasonalityThe 20 to 50 percent festive premium over peak, the 7 to 14 night minimum, and the St Barts seven-week window.
The mathThe headline rate is only 55 to 75 percent of the all-in. Every line on the card and what each one adds.
TransportNice to Monaco from €180 a seat, St Barts from $1,650. Per-seat against whole-aircraft charter, and the taxes.
InsuranceTravel cover at 4 to 10 percent of the trip, a damage waiver at 1 to 3 percent. The insurance market, and what each actually covers.
The complete index of villa cost guides and pricing explainers.
All destination cost breakdowns on the site — headline rates, service, tax, staff, and the real weekly total.