Leave midweek and save a packet

FAMILY HOLIDAYS:THE BENEFITS of being flexible with travel dates and shopping around was illustrated by a leading British consumer group this week.

It found that families in the UK could save £800 (€930) on a summer holiday abroad by moving the day of departure away from a Saturday. The well respected Which?magazine also reported that some tour operators in Britain increase the cost of a holiday by up to 70 per cent in July when schools are on their summer break.

It said that timing a holiday carefully was essential. People without children of school-going age should never go on holidays in June, July and August, when demand is at its peak.

The cost of a two-week holiday in the Cretan resort of Stalis for two adults in the first two weeks of July costs around €700 per person. A two-week break booked in the same complex in the same resort in the second two weeks of May will cost nearly half that amount.

While off-season savings are well established, Which?findings on weekend versus midweek travel are less well known.

It reported that the cost of a holiday in Mallorca for a family of four in August cost £2,334 (€2,706) if they travelled a Saturday morning. The same holiday leaving on a Thursday evening cost £1,480 (€1,716) – a saving of £854 (€990).

Another holiday to the same destination with a different tour operator cost £2,536 (€2,941) based on a Saturday departure but £655 (€760) less if the family left on a Friday afternoon.

It said that seven of the eight most expensive departure days it found during the summer were Saturdays. “We also found differences of more than £100 between different midweek departure days.”