Two weeks by the beach. Again and again.

Loacker in Heinfels is always busy. Cyclists on the Puster Valley cycle route, holidaymakers and people passing through like us meet here for speciality coffees, patisserie and, of course, wafers from the factory shop. All that, and an excellent car park, have made it a traditional stop for us.

Lake Landro is a stop that turns a long drive into something else. On the way south, finding a parking space for the car and caravan can be difficult. On the way home, it is usually easier because we are already on the right side of the road. Park the caravan, get the food out, look at the mountains. Nothing more is needed. The café serves excellent apple strudel.

Almost nowhere does espresso or cappuccino taste better than at an Italian motorway service station. Ponte nelle Alpi Ovest is our first — or last — opportunity when we take the route through the Dolomites. And we make use of it.

Sometimes we travel to Cavallino over the Brenner Pass. We take this route all the more often when heading elsewhere in Italy. And although we know we are still in South Tyrol, this is where Italy begins for us. We often make a brief stop at the outlet. A quick wander, a good coffee and on we go.

At Vianello, campers sit alongside locals, tradespeople, families and people on their way to work. Over coffee and brioche. It is not a spectacular place. But it is one where we love to sit for half an hour and watch the morning begin in Italy.

We have an outlet on our doorstep at home. Even so, we almost always make one trip to Noventa di Piave. The outlet here does have an Italian touch. Besides, the Calzedonia/Intimissimi/Tezenis outlet is on the other side of the roundabout. We try to arrive when it opens at ten. Later, even on ordinary days, the car park fills quickly and getting out takes time. The best place to park is at Calzedonia anyway. From there, it is usually quicker to get away again.

When the boat leaves Punta Sabbioni, you are somehow already in Venice. Not only because the boats are part of Venetian public transport. Above all, because you are travelling across water — and ultimately, that is what makes Venice for us. The last part of the crossing is spectacular every time. You pass right through the bustle on the water and arrive very close to St Mark's Square. That is a different experience from leaving the car in a multi-storey car park by the bridge into Venice.

The lighthouse at Punta Sabbioni marks the entrance from the open sea to the Venice Lagoon. In the past, you could watch cruise ships at close quarters here in the morning and evening on their way to and from Venice. We are glad those ships no longer sail right through the canals. Even so, Chiosco del Faro is a perfect place to sit with a hot caffeinated drink and watch life on the beach and around the lighthouse.

The ‘Venezia’ is Union Lido's large counterpart on the coastal strip east of Venice. Both campsites have their committed fans. You often hear: ‘We tried the other one, but we prefer it here.’ Perhaps you simply settle on the campsite where you started, or where you went as a child. After all, this is a kind of holiday on which you do not always have to discover something new.

Take the new cycle path towards Punta Sabbioni. After Treporti, turn right over the bridge, then right again before the cemetery and, a little further on, left out into the lagoon, past fields, stretches of water and narrow paths. With luck, you will see pink flamingos standing in the shallows. Lio Piccolo is tiny, as its name suggests. A little further on, the road ends at a restaurant. Beyond that, a boat is about your only option. The contrast with the nearby campsite is so great that it is hard to believe how little distance lies between them.

The reliable answer to the question of whether you really have to walk far for a coffee. You do not. Lido 55 is about fifty metres from our beach blanket. A caffè in the morning, a cappuccino in the afternoon, sometimes an aperitivo too.

It is quite possible to find twenty people ahead of you in the queue to order takeaway pizza here. The same twenty people then wait ahead of you for their pizzas to be ready. You queue anyway. Pizza from here on arrival day and on the evening before we leave has become a ritual. And at some point in between too.

In our memories, pools, slides and bouncy castles marked different stages of the children's development. For parents, that occasionally meant long spells sitting on the sidelines. Especially at Morbidosi: on one of far too few benches, bare feet on the squeaky artificial grass, and every thirty minutes looking for the children who had disappeared into the maze of bouncy castles. For children, simple is sometimes better than spectacular. Perhaps that is why the ‘old’ Mare, with its little rubber hills, slides and current channel, remains the fondest memory too.

When the ‘Marino Club’ opened, we wondered what a spa was doing on a campsite devoted to sun and sand — only to become regular visitors later. In earlier years, if the weather forecast was not particularly good, we were among the first at the door on family mornings because admission numbers are limited. Inside, the children would sometimes romp in the algae and salt pools in a distinctly un-spa-like manner. These days, we tend to prefer the quieter times. Or one of the massages, which feel good whatever the weather.

To say that Michi has a knack for teaching windsurfing would be a gross understatement. Adult or child: fifteen minutes of basics on the sand, and a few minutes later you are standing on the board in the water — and starting to windsurf. Afterwards, there are high-fives for everyone and, after seven hours, a windsurfing certificate. And you can be fairly sure of being greeted by your first name on your next holiday.

For a while, the dog area caused quite a stir at Union Lido. Among us too. Today, our favourite restaurant is there. During the day, we sometimes stop by the pool and watch the dogs swimming. In the evening, we sit beneath the pergolas and eat burgers. That is how things can change.

For some time now, Union Lido has been helping to manage the neighbouring campsite, Italy. It is also home to the beach bar with what we find the loveliest evening atmosphere. You sit closer to the sea than at the other bars. A good place for a sundowner.