Holidaymakers travelling to Europe's beaches and ski resorts this Easter are likely to find a greater number of tourists than usual on arrival.

Holidaymakers travelling to Europe's beaches and ski resorts this Easter are likely to find a greater number of tourists than usual on arrival.

More holidaymakers are expected because schools in many Germany states begin their spring breaks earlier this year in mid March.

Most of Europe's popular beach resorts are still too cold at that time of year, so it's likely that families heading off for an Easter break will have a smaller number of destinations to choose from.

"The weather on the Spanish mainland, the Balearics and in Turkey is too unpredictable in March," explains Susanne Stuenckel from the German tour operator TUI in Hanover.

Family can probably expect to spend only a few days on the beaches in those areas at that time of year. The holiday season has not even begun in Greece in March and many hotels do not open their doors until April.

So if you have not yet booked a holiday and you want to travel to a beach or to a ski slope, you'll have to make a decision quickly: the nearer the school holidays get, the smaller the choice.

Stuenckel says the Canary Islands and Egypt are proving to be very popular this year. Holidaymakers travelling there in March can expect constant summer temperatures.

But there are only a few holiday deals left on offer in Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Tenerife and the Egyptian tourist resorts, according to Anita Meier from Thomas Cook travel in Frankfurt.

However, if you are flexible and not fixed on a particular destination or airport, you still have a good chance of finding somewhere to travel to.

If you fall into that category you will find a last minute deal on the Canaries.

"Sometimes two or three of the main islands are booked out, but not all seven at the same time," says Tanja Dauth of L'tur, which specialises in last minute holidays.

She also advises considering the United Arab Emirates where there are "beautiful beaches and the weather is guaranteed to be warm".

The UAE is suitable for families with children and no more expensive than a holiday on the Canaries.

Austria and Switzerland are popular with winter sport enthusiasts at Easter.

"It might get very full during Easter weekend but it won't be completely booked out," says Markus Gilgen from the Swiss tourist office in Hamburg.

If the hotels in one region are full, there are usually rooms still available in private holiday homes.

If you cannot find a deal in one of the bigger ski resorts such as St. Moritz, Zermatt or Gestaad, there will still be room in one of the smaller ski resorts.

"Less well known, but good ski resorts, are St. Luc, Grimentz or Zinal in the canton of Wallis," says Gilgen.

The same applies to the communities of Scuol in Graubuenden canton or Adelboden and Lenk in the Bernese Oberland.

"They're not big ski resorts, but the smaller the ski region, the more family friendly they are," says Gilgen.

After Easter weekend, there are usually still another two weeks to go skiing before most regions wind up the winter season, says Gilgen.

It's a similar story in Austria where it's well worth checking out the less popular ski resorts.

Congestion on the slopes eases after Easter weekend, according to Leonie Stolz from Austrian tourism in Hamburg.

Winter season ends in most places during the first week of April. Exceptions to that rule include Soelden and Ischgl where the slopes are open until the beginning of May.