The strong pound and lower local prices are creating perfect conditions for bargain-hungry Brits to enjoy a fantastic deal this summer.
The new Post Office Travel Money Holiday Costs Barometer (a basket of goods, all holiday essentials) reveals the destinations where the cheapest holidays are to be found. Prices have fallen by up to 21 per cent in two thirds of European resorts since spring 2013.
The resort with the biggest price falls is Paphos, Cyprus, where prices have plunged over the past year, but for all-out value Sunny Beach in Bulgaria is the cheapest resort surveyed.
Turkey is always one of the best-value holiday destinations in this part of the world and Marmaris’s affordability has been boosted by a 31 per cent surge in the pound’s value.
In the Eurozone, the best value is to be found …
On the Costa del Sol and Costa Blanca. Just a few pence separates the two resort areas and Marmaris.
Meanwhile in Mainland Spain …
Prices are more than a third cheaper than they were five summers ago.
The same is true of the Algarve, where resort prices are 35 per cent lower than in 2009. However, prices are over six per cent higher than a year ago, even allowing for the stronger sterling exchange rate against the euro. At just over £56, this means UK holidaymakers will pay around three per cent more than on the Costa del Sol. Despite this, the cost of a round of drinks, lunch and evening meal is less than in Spain and second cheapest to Sunny Beach.
Other European sun spots where your pound will go further:
Crete, Istria and Corfu all appear in the top 10 cheapest destinations. However, Crete has emerged as 14 per cent cheaper than Corfu at £66 compared with £77, a reversal of previous results for the two Greek Islands. Istria (£72) is 11 per cent cheaper than another Croatian resort Split (£81).
And the priciest?
Ibiza, surveyed for the first time this year, weighs in as the priciest Spanish destination. At £97, the 10 items cost around 77 per cent more than in the Costa del Sol, and over 25 per cent more than in Majorca.
Lanzarote, another new destination to the survey, is almost as expensive at £87.
Barometer prices remain uniformly high in Italy where Tuscany (£101) and Sorrento (£102) are the most expensive resorts for the second year running. Despite price falls in both destinations, the overall barometer cost is almost twice as high as in the Costas, Marmaris and the Algarve and 135 per cent more than in Sunny Beach.
How about going long-haul?
Orlando, Florida, is still a good value option. A barometer total of £76 helped the theme park favourite to retain its place in the top 10 destinations in ninth place.
How the Post Office Travel Money Holiday Costs Barometer works:
The Holiday Costs Barometer works on the idea of a basket of essential items and prices them.
What’s in this basket?
A cup of coffee
A bottle of local beer/lager
A bottle/can of Coca-Cola
A glass of wine
A bottle (1.5 litre) of mineral water
Suncream (200ml SPF15)
Insect repellent
A newspaper (English tabloid)
A two-course “prix fixe / table d’hôte” lunch for two (excluding drinks) in a local restaurant
A three-course evening meal for two with a bottle of wine in a local restaurant
At a glance – the 10 cheapest holiday destinations:
Sunny Beach, Bulgaria – £43.26
Marmaris, Turkey – £54.11
Costa del Sol – £54.88
Costa Blanca – £55.18
Algarve Portugal – £56.44
Paphos, Cyprus – £62.35
Crete, Greece – £66.47
Istria, Croatia – £71.86
Orlando, Florida, USA – £76.21
Corfu, Greece – £77.34
And the 10 dearest:
Palma, Majorca – £77.45
Ciutadella, Menorca – £79.84
Split, Croatia – £80.57
Sliema, Malta – £82.63
Puerto del Carmen, Lanazote – £86.84
Bodrum, Turkey – £95.58
Nice, France – £96.33
Ibiza – £97.23
Tuscany, Italy – £100.52
Sorrento, Italy – £102.00
Featured image: Phil Price
