Travel question of the day: Simon Calder on a family summer holiday in Poland's Baltic Riviera

Have a travel question that needs answering? Ask our travel expert Simon Calder

(Simon Calder)

Every day, our travel correspondent Simon Calder tackles your questions. Just email s@hols.tv or tweet @simoncalder

Q Last year I read your article about holidaying in the Azores and booked two weeks there in summer with my two teenagers (now 16 and 13). We had a marvellous time - a tiny bit of culture for me at Angra and Ponta Delgada but mostly lots of outdoor activities and so many different places to swim. I am now trying to think about where to take them this year - work commitments mean we will be holidaying in the last two weeks of August. What I have found works best is a holiday by some water but that it should not be too hot: anything up to about 27 degrees is fine and then they get hot and bothered. I am looking for plenty of outdoor activities like cycling, kayaking, swimming and rapelling but the kids aren't too keen on hiking. A little bit of culture for me is always nice but more than one or two museums will mean a lot of moaning. I have a pile of travel books about Scandinavia and am thinking of Stockholm and the islands, or Denmark as being possibilities but wonder if you have any other ideas? I would love to keep costs down a bit but can put a maximum of £4,000 aside for the holiday each year.

Julia Weiner

A In a "normal" year I'd suggest waiting to see if you could get a deal on a beach club in Turkey, but capacity cuts mean prices are likely to hold up quite strongly. So instead I strongly recommend Poland's "Baltic Riviera".

The country is easy and cheap to get to, even in August. Costs are gratifyingly low for everything from hotels to pizza. By the second half of August, the Baltic is as warm as it ever gets over the year; and the main foreign tourist market, Germany, goes back to school around 15 August, leaving plenty of room and lower prices. And if you go to lovely Sopot then you'll be a 20-minute train ride from all the history of Gdansk.

The only downside: there isn't quite the range of activities that you enjoyed in the Azores. Renting a bike is simple, but more exciting activities are thin on the ground. However, the beach is so tempting that I think you'll all be happy there.