CAPPADOCIA CAVES, TURKEY

Children will enjoy the Indiana Jones feel to the landscape of Cappadocia, where the soft volcanic ash has given birth to extraordinary peaks and pinnacles, alongside entire villages of cave homes, monks’ cells, gnome-sized churches and cellars. Some of these ancient cave homes have been turned into elegant hotels and self-catering apartments, decked out with antiques and featuring whirlpool baths and Turkish steam rooms dug deep in the bowels of the earth.

Les Maisons de Cappadoce, renovated by the French architect Jacques Avizou, consist of 12 beautiful cave dwellings situated in the ancient, unspoilt village of Uchisar.

The dwellings vary in size, and feature vaulted ceilings, colourful kelims and locally made furniture, with breakfast delivered daily via a basket. And with the village perched 1,300m above sea level, the views over the strange rock formations known as “fairy chimneys” are pretty much fantastic.

Maison La Forge sleeps up to five and costs about £160 per night. Book through www.cappadoce.com

LOIRE TROGLO-GÎTE, FRANCE
In the Middle Ages, a quarter of the population of Anjou lived underground. Their warren-like homes were created after quarrying the soft regional limestone for building purposes. Although caves here are now primarily used to store wine or grow mushrooms, troglodyte living was revived in the Seventies, as a hip, alternative form of housing for artists and “soixante-huitards”.

Some, like the “troglo-gîte” La Petite Perrière, at Doué la Fontaine near Saumur, have been made available for tourists. This is the ultimate in cave chic — a lofty, two-bedroom carved space, with a muslin-draped four-poster bed, modern kitchen and living area, a spacious children’s room and thermodynamic heating. Available for rent from about £270 a week.

Doué’s quirky semi- underground zoo is a must — so too the neighbouring troglodyte museum village of Rochemenier, a 19th-century farming community consisting of barns, cowsheds, homes and village hall.

Details: 00 33 2 41 59 72 30, http://perso.orange.fr/gitentroglo/

THE DUSTY PLAINS OF SPAIN
North-east of Granada are the dusty plains of Hoya de Guadix — where the northern face of the Sierra Nevada forms a dramatic backdrop to this semi-desert, spaghetti-western landscape.

Poverty drove many of its inhabitants to live in caves, and several thousand still do, making Guadix the largest community of cave dwellers in Europe. For a taste of cave country culture, Cuevas Pedro Antonio, half a mile from the city, offers 19 cave apartments, ranging from one to three bedrooms. Each has a small kitchen, a terrace with barbecue, attractive rustic furnishings and access to a shared pool.

Adults pay about £60 a night (minimum stay in high season, four nights) including breakfast. Children from 3-9 pay £10 a night.

Details: 00 34 958 66 49 86

LIVE LIKE LUKE SKYWALKER, TUNISIA
Take the family on an exciting Tunisian adventure, travelling from the edge of the Sahara desert, through lush oases, to the Mediterranean coast. A week-long family adventure from Explore includes a night at the basic but friendly Hotel Marhala, in the Tunisian troglodyte village of Matmata. This is one of the most famous and unusual sights in Tunisia — an “invisible village”, first recorded in the 4th century, and camouflaged by a sandy, pockmarked lunar landscape.

The underground Berber houses, with their tunnels and interconnecting circular pits, have been dug into large craters in the ground. Children will love identifying the houses by the TV aerials sticking out of the ground, and the fact that the Marhala was the setting for the weird alien disco in Star Wars, as well as for Luke Skywalker’s home.

Details: Land of the Lotus Eaters escorted one-week tours depart February to May and August to December. The cost is from £748 per adult and £698 per child, with Explore (0870 3334001, www.explore.co.uk)

SUBTERRANEAN SANTORINI, GREECE
With its links to the legends of Atlantis, the dramatic volcanic Greek island of Santorini should quickly fire young imaginations. Alexander’s cliff-top Cave Houses in Oia, one of the three main villages, have great 180-degree views of the waters of the Caldera, the island’s central stage created by a volcanic eruption some 4,000 years ago.

These are hip, boho-feel “units”: the largest, sleeping up to five people, is decorated in the typical Cyclades style with cool white-washed, organic-shaped rooms and simple dark-wood antique furniture.

Each cave unit has a sea view — and there is a shared pool too.

Details: Prices start at about £137 per night for B&B in a four-person cave unit. The minimum stay is seven nights. Book through www.vacation-greece.com/hotels/cyclades/santorini/cavehouses

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