Opio, Provence

Location: Opio is in Peter Mayle country, nestled among picturesque olive groves on the edge of the Provence hills, just 30 minutes from Nice, in the south of France.

Getting there: Nice is an easy destination to reach from the UK, with many carriers flying to the town’s airports from Birmingham, London, Manchester and Southampton. Flight time from the UK is about 90 minutes. If you’ve booked a package then a coach takes guests from Nice to the resort.

Tennis facilities: Guests have 13 courts at their disposal, including six artificial grass and seven artificial clay, five of which are floodlit. Artificial clay, we hear you scoff? Worry not. These play just like the real thing, but are cleaner, not affected by heavy downpours, they’re gentle on your body and low maintenance too. All courts are free to use, any time of the day.

Coaching: The challenge for Head Coach Gilles and his team of qualified pros is to make sure they tailor their programmes to every standard of player, which, they promise, they do. There are free group lessons in the mornings and organised competition after lunch. Individual lessons can be arranged at extra cost. There are also free group sessions for kids.

Eating: We hear the food is of a very high standard, as you would expect in the south of France. There’s a wide variety of vegetarian, fish and meat dishes and free wine with meals too.

Drinking: Plenty to do and free alcohol to boot. There are several lively bars, a theatre and a nightclub within the village.

Sleeping: This resort has been recently renovated and it shows. Each of the 443 rooms have been redecorated in shades of pastel and ochre to give the accommodation an authentic Provencal feel. Guests can choose from Club Rooms (interconnecting rooms are available) or suites that come with private terraces and separate living areas.

What else? Golf is this Club Med’s next strongest hand, with a small nine-hole course and a driving range on site and a decent 18-hole track less than a mile away, as well as another 20 (yes, 20) close enough to try out. There are also three swimming pools, gym, dance studio, spa and archery. Off the sporting agenda the nearby town of Grasse is well known for its perfume and Saint-Paul is billed as a ‘medieval city of arts’. This village is no different from most Club Meds in that it’s extremely child friendly. The Club Med Baby Welcome package offers baby equipment on request and specially prepared meals. There are loads of things to do for kids of all ages, with three specific clubs aimed at the age groups of 2-3, 3-10 and 10-plus.