Dangling upside down from the trapeze and swinging through the hot air, I felt a rush of excitement and fear as the blood went to my head.

Peering down I could see some upside-down children's faces grinning in my direction and further away the ocean toppled onto the sandy bay.

It was the first time I had tried out my circus skills and despite my initial reluctance to have a go, as I walked back towards the beach I was already planning my next session.

But the question was: when was I going to fit this in to my hectic schedule? Between cycling, tennis, sailing, salsa classes and, of course, those all important afternoons relaxing by the pool or on the beach with a cocktail in one hand and a book in the other, I was struggling to find a window in my week-long holiday diary.

Jackie, our friendly Club Med rep, told me it was impossible to get bored at the Kamarina resort. By day one of our holiday, I could see exactly what she meant.

On a pre-paid, all-inclusive holiday, guests can do as much or as little as they please.

There is something for everyone – from body pump and aqua aerobics for the gym bunny in you, to archery, a climbing wall and quad biking for the more adventurous or jet skiing, kayaking and catamaran sailing for the water babes.

The most evident thing about Club Med was its family-friendly ethos. Also included in the price of the holiday are a well developed range of kids' clubs. Children, aged from four to ten can go to the Mini Club Med, whilst 11 to 17-year-olds are welcomed to the Club Med Passworld. Club Med Baby and Petite Club Med take care of the youngest.

The clubs are open for six days out of seven for nine hours a day and a special team of GOs ('Gentils Organisateurs') keep the children occupied and happy throughout the day, with sports and activities for the older children and early learning games, rest periods and nursery rhymes for the younger guests.

The service and tuition was outstanding from our arrival. As the coach pulled into Kamarina at the beginning of our holiday, the GOs stood clapping and greeting us as we disembarked, handing us drinks, spiriting our luggage away, and guiding us through picturesque cobbled streets to our rooms where champagne on ice awaited to soothe away the one-and-a-half-hour ride from the airport.

Corny, maybe, but the personal service was charming. The atmosphere at the village was fun and upbeat. The GOs worked tirelessly throughout the day, and by 9pm they would be on the stage in brightly-coloured outfits for the evening show.

The accommodation was also surprisingly good. Across the 96-hectare village, the rooms are split between the main hotel and the villagio, where we were based. The rooms, mainly within attractive bungalows, were spacious, functional and peaceful.

If you want to leave the resort there are also a number of trips on offer. Kamarina is 80 miles south of Catania on the south-west coast of Sicily, so a trip to the main city Palermo is out of the question on a seven-day visit.

However, Club Med excursions take in the magnificent castle of Donnafugata, the ancient city of Caltagirone and a day trip to Malta. We took a half-day trip to lively Vittoria where we witnessed the buzz of a traditional Sicilian market, bought some home-grown delicacies and watched the world go by.

During our break, Europe's tallest and most active volcano, Mount Etna, was spewing lava 400 metres into the air, which briefly closed Catania Airport and sent ash and smoke into nearby towns.

While the travel companies weren't, for obvious reasons, going too near the volcano, some travellers dared to go as close as possible. One lady we spoke to on the plane home described feeling the heat of the ash through the soles of her heavy boots.

We decided to stay nearer to the resort and on a couple of occasions we left the village to go cycling around the Sicilian countryside. If joining the Lycra-clad Euro-elite, seemingly fresh from the Tour de France, on a 45-mile morning pedal-dash looks a bit like hard work, settle for the more leisurely afternoon ride.

The two rides my partner and I joined were actually rather challenging – especially when my chain fell off while climbing up from a valley deep in tomato-growing country.

Lucky there was an ever friendly cycling instructor on hand to get me back up and pedalling in no time at all, back to the village to watch the sun set on a fantastically fun-filled holiday.