If you're a lover of the Ocean and haven't yet visited the stunning shores of the Aquitaine then read on, I'm about to reveal one of France's best-kept secrets.

If you really want to discover the best of Cornwall's coastline, then you probably need to start with one of the big five; St Ives, St Mawes, Carbis Bay, Bude and Newquay. Whilst the first three are ideal for family holidays by the sea, the last two are a Mecca for the surfing crowd, with or without kids.

The County of Devon offers so much more than the holiday brochure blurb. Devon's coastline is so varied and many of its finest destinations have somehow managed to avoid being over-commercialised. These places promise the most spectacular beaches, coves and coastal walks.

Somerset is home to an un-spoilt coastline that meanders its way along the south side of the Bristol Channel and boasts some of the South West's biggest sandy beaches. The coastline starts around the well-known resort of Western Super Mare and ends at the border with Devon, taking in the Exmoor National Park along the way.

The Cornwall coastline is made-up of over 250 miles of undulating and zigzagging shores. There are over 150 beaches and coves to discover here... some are huge and brash but many are secluded and nestled into the most impossibly idyllic woodland or natural harbours.

The English Riviera is the quintessential English holiday resort with all the trimmings and has been for at least two centuries. At one glance it can be brash and at another it can be utterly refined, but there is no doubt that it is sublimely British.

The Isle of Wight is the perfect pocket-sized beach holiday destination for families because despite being England's largest island, it only measures a mere 23 miles long by 13 miles across, making it very easy to conquer. For such a pint-sized isle it is astonishing to find out that it is in fact home to a record breaking 17 Blue Flag beaches!

No, we're not talking about the colour of the water; we’re talking Blue Flag awards and all the beach props, services and quality standards that come with them. There are just over 4,000 of these premium beaches worldwide and quite a few in Cornwall. These beaches have worked hard to meet the very highest quality, safety and environmental criteria and to hold on to this prestigious stamp of approval.

The Aquitaine coastline stretches from Biarritz to Arcachon, and just the very mention of those two places are enough to get me booking my tickets to this classy, sassy stretch of Atlantic coastline. There are four separate tranches to these eclectic shores. Just above Arcachon lies the Médoc, a stunning peninsula renowned for its wines, chateaus and magnificent pale sandy beaches that are lined by pine forests and wild dunes. A little further south lies the Bay of Arcachon where Europe's largest sand dune, called the Dune of Pilat drifts into a sparkling turquoise lagoon. Then there are the shores of Landes and the Silver Coast, named after the thrashing ocean spray that washes it.

Is there anything more exciting than planning your summer holiday? And it's extra special when combined with a group of friends or your extended family. You just have to make sure that you choose the right location, which generally tends to be a beach, due to the diversity and freedom it instantly affords groups of all ages.