Taste of the tropics

There's just something about a bikini. Think of Raquel Welch looking beastly in the first leopardskin bikini in One Million Years BC. Think of Ursula Andress rising out of the water clad only in two scraps of white fabric in Dr No. Think of Brigitte Bardot making gingham look anything but homely in And God Created Woman. Ever since civil engineer Louis Reard stitched together the first two piece in July 1946, and rather bizarrely named it after the South Sea island where the first atomic bomb of the post-war era had been exploded some five days before, bikinis have been unbeatable for a bit of Bond-girl glamour.

Bikinis also have a lot of practical benefits in the sun. No matter how careful you are in a one-piece suit, and no matter how much you contort yourself applying sunblock to all the right places, you're bound to come home with a bright white imprint of your sports-back swimsuit blasted onto your back. The strings on an itsy-bitsy, teeny-weeny bikini should cut down on the dangers of strap marks. If you're the kind of brazen hussy who goes topless, then you'll already be a convert to the bikini, which allows you to go just about as far as decency does, in pursuit of an all-over tan.

More and more shops are starting to sell mix and match bikinis, a concept which any small girl who liked paper dolls will easily understand. In Oasis, Dunnes Stores and Marks & Spencers, you can pick up a skimpy bra top to suit your modest bust, and either put it together with a sylph-like bottoms, if you're a skinnyma-links, or something more generous if you tend towards a pear-shape.

Marks & Spencer even does little skirts, shorts and sarongs to match their bikinis, although it is not always such a great idea to get an entirely matching beach ensemble. The resemblance to a deckchair can be a little unfortunate.

Halter-neck bikinis - the type which have two triangles of cloth tied together around your neck - are particularly popular this year. You should try a couple of these on, as they're more supportive than they seem, but you may find that something with underwires and sturdier straps is more flattering. If you really have a pin-up style bust, it might be an idea to steer clear of the high street fashion bikinis altogether, and go to a shop which will measure and fit you properly.

Bandau bikini tops are good for strapless tanning but not so great for when you're jumping waves - make sure you don't do a Sinita and bare all to the Boys, Boys, Boys. High-leg bikini bottoms do elongate your leg but all too often come with string sides which can cut into your flesh and make you look as though your suit is held together with elastic bands. Bikini bottoms which tie with little bows at the side, like this season's prized Burberry ones, are much prettier.

Like everywhere else in fashion, animal prints are popular for bikinis this year. There's a rather groovy zebra print one (£16 for the top; £12 for the bottoms) in Oasis; an astonishing cow-print one with a tie-front in Dunnes Stores (£20) and a very old-skool leopardskin one in River Island (£29.99) if you want to recreate Raquel's look. You won't have to look too hard to find something in polka dots, gingham or Missoni-style stripes either (Sock Shop does a particularly good green striped number for £21.99).

Of course, there's a lot of folk who would rather spend every night of their holiday in a karaoke bar than bare all in a bikini, and far be it from us to prise you away from your beloved one-piece. But if you're tempted to show a little more flesh this year, you'll probably be surprised by just how much there is in the shops. One good half-way house is the "tankini" which sounds like a fluorescent citrus drink but is in fact a two piece suit, comprising of generous bottoms and a vest-like top, which allows you to get a bit of your tummy tanned without revealing every bulge.

The most important thing to remember about bikinis is that almost everybody has bits they want to suck in and scarcely anybody looks like the models draped over the pages of fashion mags from June to September. Still, a bikini does add a certain ooh-la-la to your holiday look if you wear one with confidence and a bit of sass. Think Raquel. Think Ursula. Think of not having strap marks when you get home.