I visited Dubrovnik in Croatia - and found the views from above just as entrancing as the street level

What looks like a huge queue actually includes a lot of people waiting for an adjacent bus stop, so we only have to wait in line for 15 minutes or so before paying to enter the cable car.

When you get to the ticket office (€27 for adult two-way trip, €15 for one-way, and kids return tickets are only €7) you realise that you already have a rather nice view of Dubrovnik’s Old Town’s tiled roofs and historic protective walls, framed by the azure Adriatic sparkling in the sunshine behind. But once you’re in motion heading up Mount Srd, it’s jaw-dropping.

That was the second piece of proof that Dubrovnik is enjoyed as much from above as at street level. The previous day we had again headed into town, but that time had bought a Dubrovnik pass which allows entry to a wealth of attractions. Predominantly it allows you into museums, but the most alluring item on the list was the chance to walk around the Old Town walls. The walls have their origins in medieval times, as the trading port of Dubrovnik, a staging post between east and west, would have been attractive to both the Venetians and the Turkish at many points in history.

They have withstood several wars - including the Balkans war of the 1990s, which took a toll on the city as a whole - and make Dubrovnik one of the most distinctive and evocative cities I have visited. Although their geography is different, Dubrovnik reminds me of Florence in the way it has been so well preserved, so well that it transports you back in time instantly and you can happily wander its streets for hours, just drinking it in.

We were staying at Tirena, one of a group of Valamar hotels on the Babin Kuk peninsula to the west of the Old Town. A frequent bus service connected the area with the centre, but there was plenty to do in the hotel complex.

The children were entranced by - and insisted on a daily visit to - an indoor swimming pool which had a bubble area and a water curtain for additional fun. They also - briefly - braved the outdoor pool but decided that it was more fun to sit in the sun as the water in April is a little too bracing. There are beaches nearby, pebbley rather than sandy, but with plenty of sun loungers around this was not an issue.

And the absolute crowning glory, though, was Maroworld; a whole building just dedicated to every kind of fun a primary school-aged child could wish for. Mini trampoline park? Yes. Gaming room? Yep. Lego? Loads of it. Soft play and ball pit? Naturally. An astonishing machine which could scan your colouring of a fish and then add it to a projection of an aquarium on the wall? No problem. There was also a nighty dance-along with Maro (a lobster, by the way) but organised fun seemed redundant when there was so much to explore and try out. It really was the stuff of dreams for anyone born after 2014.

However, we adults were hardly poorly served. The indoor pool was perfectly capable of some adult lengths, and for those wanting less strenuous times, the spa was a great way to unwind.

And the buffet dining in the evening was a sight to behold. Local dishes, roast meat, a huge range of salad, more puddings than you could shake a stick at (and we shook the stick hard, believe me), it was a feast for the senses as well as the stomach. It was proof that there was plenty to enjoy at ground level - though our hearts remained entranced by what we had seen from above.

I had never been to Croatia before - and this was the first time we had dared to fly as a family of four - with a seven-year-old and five-year-old in tow. Such was the beauty of the area, the friendliness of the people and the comfort of the stay, we would instantly like to return.