Hu Fabulous Village

This is a smashingly well set site: within 15 minutes of the airport, 20 from the beach and 30 from fabulous Rome. All roads lead to Rome and so they jolly well should… bag as much time as you can here to wander its famed sights, then have a picnic in one of the city's peaceful parks (Rome has one of the biggest areas of green space in Europe). If you're not sure where to start, or lacking in the lingo department, the folks on site can sort you out with bus tours (to Rome and destinations beyond, including Pompeii and Naples), travel tickets and entry tickets for some of the top spots. Drive south via the Via del Mare to reach the nearest beach to Fabulous Village, the sprawling sands of Ostia Lido facing the Tyrrhenian Sea. Ostia was once a hugely strategic harbour city in ancient Roman times: the Ostia Antica archaeological site a couple of kilometres inland (15 minutes' drive) is very much worth a look for its excellently preserved buildings and its mosaics. If ancient sightseeing is a tad too much for little monsters, take them along for a day at the Parco dei Mostri or Park of Monsters (an hour and 15 minutes): here be dragons, and ogres, and other beasties hewn into stone.