I’m a travel writer and here’s why the best thing about a holiday is… the hotel buffet breakfast (plus the best strategy to make the most of it)

Forget water parks, temples, shops, monuments: nothing gets my family moving like a buffet breakfast.

And the more lavish and ostentatious, the better.

Towering displays of mini pastries and muffins sprinkled with decorative strawberries. Meters of beautifully fanned, segmented fruit. Burnished silver domes promising full English. Juices lined up like a rainbow of vitamins.

We have an established routine. First, reserve a table – outside, in the shade, not in the sun.

Then we complete a complete circuit without a plate. We walk through each exhibition area – the egg chefs, the waffle stations, the yogurts, the birches and the inevitable Scandinavian salmon and caper zone – and plan our attack. My youngest son, Sandy, ten, heads straight for the crepe maker.

12-year-old Freddy might veer east with spicy noodles and spring rolls. My husband and I usually start with an austere fruit plate and then go crazy.

In the past, when we were amateurs, we grabbed hold of things all of a sudden. Scrambled eggs lightly poured into waffles with maple syrup. Sushi and yogurt sharing a plate with a Danish pastry.

Now, like army snipers, we carry out endless solo missions from our family HQ. And we set personal bests – Sandy currently holds the family record of 12 visits in a single sitting – which are fond memories that will carry us through the dark winter months.

After a good hour of picking, stacking, eating, and admiring everyone’s choices, our job is done.

Naturally, we leave with pockets full of nuts, nectarines, yogurts, pastries and, once, a salmon roll.

Because after all, we definitely need a little something before lunch.

Tell us what you prefer from the holidays. Email us at vacationplanner@dailymail.co.uk