Family Sri Lanka

A luxury family holiday in Sri Lanka works so well because of the excellent range of activities on offer, but also thanks for the accommodation on offer. While there are any number of family-friendly chic boutique hotels opening all the time, Sri Lanka is also home to a wide range of seriously nice villas that work perfectly for luxury multi-generational family holidays or for groups of friends to rent together with their children.

Once the accommodation is sorted (and we only work with the finest villa providers and hoteliers in Sri Lanka), it's just case of choosing what to do, with the beaches on the west, south - and now also east - coasts a great place to start. The west coast, and particularly Kosgoda, is also the place to see giant turtles laying their eggs on the beach in season, which is from November to May.

Meanwhile, by quirk of marine geology Sri Lanka's southern shore is unusually close to the edge of the continental shelf as it drops down into far deeper water, meaning that small boats can zip out to spot giants of the deep such as sperm whales and even the biggest of all - blue whales - with sightings as much as 90% guaranteed in season. For children who've gawped at the full scale model of the blue whale in the Natural History Museum, this is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see these huge creatures in their natural habitat.

Away from the beautiful coastline, another major draw for children is the Elephant Orphanage at Pinnewela, where up to 80 ellies live at any one time, roaming free. Staying on the wildlife theme, diminutive David Attenboroughs will also adore the Junior Ranger Course at Leopard Trails in Yala National Park, home to the world's largest concentration of the spotted felines. Alongside game drives and safari walks, children learn skills such as animal tracking, astronomy, bush survival skills and wildlife identification, culminating in a Ranger's Test and certificate. All guaranteed to make the parents terribly proud. And green with envy.