The bournemouth air festival is something I have attended now for the two years it has been running and fantastic it is indeed.

If you saw me in person the last thing you would think is that I am a fan of planes and a bit of a secret spotter but this has to be a winner all round for families and all generational ages.

The beach front is lined with stalls, exhibits and demonstration vans from the RAF, royal navy, Royal airforce, and air cadets as well as numerous pilots. Its fun with bouncy castles for children, have a go stands with the army to sit in a truck, pose with guns, have your face camoflaged up, and sit in helicopters. My daughter aged 3 adored this section and had immense fun as well as my husband.

The air show itself lasts for 3 days and is best viewed on the clifftop at Bournemouth centre, the west cliff, southbourne overcliff or east cliff. Take binoculars as some acts are a little furthur out if they are stunt acts so youll get a better view with them.

This year saw remarkable stunt regimes with air trapese artists, the red arrows, spectacular as ever, a vulcan, mustang and spitfire display and flyover as well as the red bull matadors. Each display was incredible, some were incredibly loud, so people who have ear problems take some ear plugs because the vulcan especially was a severe roar.

The best thing about this festival is that its completly free, you will see aircraft which rarely displays itself, the most prolific pilots in the industry and stunt acts that will be sure to shock and aghast you.

A top tip is to take a picnic, a blanket, even chairs and plenty to drink and make a day of it on the cliff tops to view. The more I saw the more I wanted to see and when the sun is shining this is the best event bournemouth showcase.