President Nicolas Sarkozy and his wife Carla have provoked an outcry in France by spending the weekend at the El Tamarindo Beach and Golf Resorts in a one bedroom villa owned by a millionaire friend of Mexico’s President Felipe Calderón.

The vast holiday home came complete with private pool, outdoor Jacuzzi and the service of a butler, personal cook and maid.

It is currently high season at the resort, with the villa costing $3,500 plus 17 per cent taxes and obligatory 10 per cent service charges - making a total of just over $4,300.