Sunshine Dreaming

One afternoon I was idly scrolling through a holiday website, dreaming of a family escape, and Olivia pointed to the screen: "I want to go to that one" she declared. Casa Luis Apartments in Ibiza had used a photo of their children's pool as the main hook for their residences - possibly in anticipation of this very situation, as Oli asked constantly over the next few days when we were going to the pool with the clown. I eventually caved, added the hotel to my shortlist, and booked our holiday. Very clever, Casa Luis.

Ibiza greeted us from the airplane window as a series of golden beaches, rugged rocks, and sea of an impossible colour. Honestly, I couldn't get over the gorgeous turquoise water. We spent long afternoons on the golden sand of Santa Eulalia beach, just gazing at that horizon, and it was blissful.

What did we love?

The Es Cana Hippy Market is one of Ibiza's largest markets, running on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and taking up what felt like several acres of space! We spent a nice few hours looking around at the wide range of stalls, and dancing to the music that floated across the space. It was exceptionally busy, though, so be prepared for crowds, and the popular stalls had crushes of people next to each one. They also don't accept haggling, the price is the price.

We spent an afternoon exploring Ibiza Old Town: a truly beautiful maze of picturesque streets and shops, interspersed with houses that had lines of laundry drying in the sun, so the air smelt of clean linen and flowers. The citadel was incredibly impressive, and the views were spectacular, but brace yourselves for a long walk up steep hills with little shade.

Olivia wasn't in the best mood for either trip, and would probably have preferred to have stayed by the hotel pool or nearby beach the whole time, but such is the case on a family holiday!

I was pleasantly surprised by Ibiza, how green it was, welcoming to families and children, and did I mention the colour of the sea? I had been apprehensive about travelling with a little one, but she loved it, and I'm already planning our next holiday abroad together!

Where should we go next?

My top tips:

• Factor 50 suncream. We used P20, which is on the pricier side, but Oli's skin was completely protected the whole time we were there.

• Shorts and light trousers, sun hats and a change of shoes. We did a lot of walking, in low humidity and high temperature, so staying cool is essential.

• Children's travel lap-desk. We used this one from Amazon, and it meant that Oli was able to draw while travelling, which kept her entertained (when she wasn't making friends with the lady behind us on the plane!)

We flew to Ibiza from Manchester with Jet2 Holidays, and stayed at Casa Luis in Santa Eulalia.