Taking a holiday is a wonderful relaxing thing, except when it becomes too expensive and you find yourself getting stressed. Here we’ve put together a series of tips to help you save money, have a superb holiday and avoid expensive costs along the way.
Book ahead or last minute
There are two options for getting a good deal on your holiday. The first is to book it as far in advance as you can, and the second is to book it last minute at the end of the summer when tour operators are reducing any holidays they have left so that they don’t get left with unsold stock.
Look in the national newspapers
Various national newspapers offer holiday deals each year. Some are abroad, some here in the UK, and most involve collecting tokens and then sending them with your cash to get your holiday deal. Not all of them offer great value for money, but some really are worth thinking about.
Book online
If the newspapers don’t offer what you want, then there are far more options available to you if you book online, including using a cashback site such as Quidco, Topcashback or Ipoints. These cashback sites offer an amount of cash back – sometimes fixed, sometimes a percentage – so that you can save a few extra pennies.
Pre-book your airport parking
Make sure you take the time before your holiday to pre-book your car parking at the airport while your away. By doing this you can often save a considerable amount of money compared with just turning up and paying on the day. For an example of this, Airparks offer discounts on parking at Birmingham airport parking and Cardiff airport parking as well as a number of other airport car parks in the UK.
Fly no frills
Budget airlines today are becoming more popular and they do offer superbly low prices IF you make sure that you stick to the rules carefully. You’ll often need to take your own food, and entertainment if you want some as they tend to charge extra for these, but do so, and you could save a bundle. Check the payment options too – Ryanair offer just one option for payment that doesn’t incur an extra fee, so make sure you look at how you can bypass these ‘extra’ costs.
Travel off peak
You’ll pay more if you travel at peak times no matter what the transport method, so make sure you opt for the off peak options when possible. This can involve picking the days you travel carefully as well as the time.
Sort things ahead of time
Passports cost more if you need them in a rush, so plan ahead and get these sorted a couple of months at least before you intend to travel. An EHIC card works the same way so get this sorted ahead of time too (this is a card that says you’re entitled to free medical treatment in Europe).
Buying foreign currency
The best currency exchange deals can usually be found online. Use a price comparison site and check the high street prices as well, and get the best price you can as the better the exchange rate, the more money you’ll have to spend!