For years, the Algarve has been the destination of choice for UK families visiting the stunning Portuguese coast. However, here at Activities Abroad we think that in order to experience a truly memorable family holiday, you need to visit the locations away from the tourist trail and uncover the hidden gems instead. It’s in these special destinations where you can enjoy authentic and unforgettable experiences that you and your family will cherish for years to come.

Though Brexit is official, in the world of travel we know that friendships and the opportunities for great family holidays are much stronger than borders. In fact, Visit Portugal wants to remind us of just that.

Former television presenter and journalist Eleanor Findlater was looking for a holiday to suit her family's love of nature and adventure. After contacting Activities Abroad we knew there was only one place we could send her and the family - The Azores! We caught up with Eleanor to find out what she and her family thought about these incredible islands and the adventures that they enjoyed:

Here at Activities Abroad we have always viewed rivers, lakes, canyons and oceans as natural playgrounds. Over the course of nearly two decades, we’ve travelled the world seeking out, and, very importantly, trying out the very best water-based experiences.

This got us to thinking about which are our absolute favourites so we asked our Family Travel Experts to come up with their particular choices. This resulted in a very comprehensive list so we decided to whittle it down to one per country.

and the winner is...

This summer we invited families to share their memories of their Activities Abroad holiday with us and we were delighted with the great response we received. From the Mihill family hiking through the Paklenica National Park in Croatia to the Crump family canyoning in Slovenia, we received some amazing images and videos from our summer sun holidays all over the world.

We created a video of some of the #AASummerFun 2015 memories so you can enjoy a piece of the action.

Click here to watch the video.