Take your pick between these sun-kissed Sicilian siblings, which have been masterfully restored by a Milanese architect couple.

Designed by Marco Giunta and Viviana Haddad, the holiday villas sit on the northern coast of Sicily close to Cefalù. And though they bear a familial resemblance, their personalities couldn’t be more different….

Seaview Villa is a sleek and contemporary four-bedroom home that perches proudly on the shore.

Its interiors are pared-back, featuring geometric tiled floors, crisp white walls, and a dramatic floating staircase in the living room, which is furnished with vintage midcentury pieces.

Step outside the Sicilian holiday home – available to rent from €900 per day via I-escape – and there’s a huge terrace with alfresco dining and seating areas that make the most of views across the bay.

Next up is Olive House, which is the more demure of the duo and hides among the trees, 200 m from the shore. Its tall rooms are capped by whitewashed beams, while walls are decked in reclaimed and ornately decorated Sicilian tiles.

Gnarled wooden furniture adds to the rustic vibe inside the two-bedroom holiday home, which costs from €457 per day.

Architect-owners Giunta and Haddad split their time between Sicily and Milan, and previously converted a dozen crumbling cave cottages into a contemporary guesthouse called Casa Talia in Modica.

The Italian villas are five minutes drive from the centre of Cefalù, a medieval tourist town popular with history buffs. It’s dominated by a 12th century Norman cathedral, which has decorative Byzantine mosaics and soaring towers, and a ruined hilltop fortress.

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