Even in the south of France you can have the odd wet day, so how do you keep the family amused?

Pack a rainy day holdall with jigsaws, board games, books, colouring books and crayons, play-dough and other craft stuff. Alternatively take a few simple recipes and have a baking afternoon. You can spin out the time this takes if you include a shopping trip for all the ingredients! Collect leaflets, fliers, entrance tickets etc and make a collage or keep a scrap book.

Before you go on holiday spend time on the internet looking up details of the local swimming pool, ice-rink and bowling alley so that you have all the necessary information at your finger tips. Failing that pay a visit to the local tourist information office to see what is on offer in the area.

If you are lucky enough to be staying in the Rennes, Rouen or St Brieuc and have children between 4 and 11 they will enjoy a visit to one of the Woupi covered play areas with their ball pits, slides, mazes and go-carts. Also in Brittany is the Oceanopolis marine life centre which children are sure to enjoy and if the rain stops you can have a couple of hours on the beach nearby. La Rochelle too has an excellent aquarium if you are staying in the Vendée. Fans of Haribo sweets will welcome a rainy day in Provence if it means a trip to the Haribo Museum. Its interactive and passive displays will appeal to children of all ages.

Of course you don't have to stay in just because it is raining. One of the benefits of taking your own car with you is that you can throw wellies and cagoules in, so you can still get out even if it is pouring with rain. Young children can have fun with puddles, whether they are splashing around in them or trying to jump over them. Depending on the temperature, and obviously not if there is thunder, outdoor swimming pools can often feel warmer in the rain. Just make sure that you dry off quickly afterwards and have a hot drink to warm up.

Finally make sure everyone has realistic expectations of what sort of weather you are likely to encounter. In her early teens my daughter was heart-broken that she was not going home from the Vosges with a tan to compete with her friend who had been to Greece. That way they won't be able to make you feel guilty if it rains!