Where to Take You European Family Summer Holiday This Year

Majorca – perfect for outdoorsy families

The largest of the four main Balearics is packed with safe sandy beaches and stunning scenery. Fun on or by the water includes sailing, paragliding, waterskiing, bodysurfing, and glass-bottomed boat rides, and there are wonderful regattas to watch. When you’re not building your own sandcastles, head to Puerto Pollenca for the epic displays by professionals – everything from crocodiles to castles.

Mallorca’s historic capital Palma has labyrinthine alleys to explore and vintage trains to Sóller. Other ideas are horse-riding tours from the Rancho Grande working ranch, hot-air balloon rides and days out at water parks.

Crete – perfect for history lovers

The largest Greek island offers natural and ancient wonders within just a four-hour flight of the UK. This is the cradle of early Mediterranean civilisation, and kids’ adventurous imaginations will be fired up by the ruins of Minoan palaces, Byzantine churches, Venetian castles and Turkish minarets. Knossos is a must – this is the ancient palace around which the Minoan civilisation grew.

Of course Crete also has wonderful beaches and fishing villages to discover. One of the loveliest beaches is Váï (Finikodassos), a conservation area due to its being home to the largest natural palm grove in Europe, with great snorkelling, windsurfing and jet-skiing.

Turkish Riviera – perfect for wildlife lovers

Turkey’s Mediterranean coast is a beguiling blend of child-friendly beaches, great sailing conditions, timeless inland villages and more Greek ruins than Greece. One of the best things to do is take a wooden boat ride from riverside Dalyan (which has dramatic Lycian tombs carved into is cliff-face, quayside restaurants, hot springs and mud baths) to Iztuzu Beach, a rare breeding ground for loggerhead turtles.

Other highlights are the the full-day ‘12 Island’ boat-trip from Fethiye, with slides into the water from many of the double-decker boats, and days at Olüdeniz beach with its cheap taxi-boats to Butterfly Valley with its Jersey tiger butterflies. There’s also canoeing over part of the sunken city of Kekova.

Corfu - perfect for explorers

This Greek island is known for its beaches and resorts, but there are adventures in store off-the-beaten track – hiking Mount Pantokrator with older kids, for example, or hiring a motorboat to sound out the secret coves of the north-east. In Corfu town, meanwhile, the island’s rich history comes to life in the Museum of Archaeology with its menacing Gorgon Medusa sculpture, and at the Venetian fortress.

The Corfiot interior with its wildflowers, olive groves and cyprus and fig trees is a lovely horse-riding spot, while the coast beckons with scenic fishing harbours, safe shallow waters and water sports.

Côte d’Azur - perfect for food lovers

The Mediterranean coast of southeastern France, also known as the French Riviera, is known for the glitzy glamour of beach resorts such as Saint-Tropez and Cannes but has remarkable landscapes that provide the produce for some of best food you’ll ever eat. Great things to do here with food-loving kids include browsing (and tasting!) in Nice’s iconic Cours Saleya market and a trip to the inland foodie hotspot of Mougins.

To escape the crowds of the famous resorts, check out family-friendly seaside towns such as Menton and Antibes. For art-loving kids there are also amazing museums including Fondation Maeght in St-Paul de Vence and the Musée Marc Chagall in Nice.

For more information and inspirations or to book your European family holiday, call me today.

Unmissable Route 66 stop-offs and experiences

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Few journeys capture the spirit of the open road quite like Route 66. Stretching nearly 2,500 miles from Chicago to Los Angeles, this legendary highway has long been a symbol of adventure, nostalgia, and classic Americana. Nicknamed the ‘Mother Road’, Route 66 passes through eight states and countless small towns, desert landscapes, and neon-lit roadside attractions. While the journey itself is part of the magic, it’s the memorable stop-offs along the way that truly bring this iconic road trip to life. From retro diners to truly unique natural wonders, these are some of the experiences that shouldn’t be missed.

See another side of Africa beyond the safari parks

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Africa is often introduced through safari, but that’s only one part of a much wider experience. Across the continent, you’ll find coastlines, cities, mountains, and food scenes that feel completely different from one another. South Africa is a good example of this variety, where you can move from beaches to vineyards to historic sites within a relatively short distance. It’s a destination that works just as well for a multi-stop trip as it does for a single base with day trips.

Set-jetting: The world's most cinematic destinations to visit right now

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More than half of all travellers now research a destination after seeing it on screen, and the results are genuinely exciting: set jetting is sending curious travellers to places they might never have otherwise considered, taking them deeper into destinations than a standard itinerary ever would. The best set-jetting trips aren't just about ticking off a filming location. They're about using a story you love as a way into somewhere real. Here are the destinations doing it best right now - and the shows that are sending people there.