Holidaymakers staying in property in Italy this summer could find they have a high-profile neighbour, with the news that Silvio Berlusconi is among the European leaders planning to stay in their home country for a getaway.

The Financial Times reports that the lure of property in Italy has proved enough for the country’s prime minister this year, while Spain’s Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero has two trips planned in his own homeland.

His first is expected to take him to northern Castilia, with a follow-up family vacation south of Madrid.

Meanwhile, French premier Nicolas Sarkozy is heading to the French Riviera to stay at a property owned by wife Carla Bruni.

Guidance from the Italian Government Tourist Board suggests that people heading to property in the country should ensure they have adapters for any electrical items they carry with them, to allow them to operate on the local round-pronged 220 V, 50 Hz mains supply.

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