Press release -
Best bargains for a family half term holiday abroad
- Cyprus beats the Canaries to rate as the best value Half Term holiday bargain
- Cancun is the survey’s lowest-priced long haul resort and the only destination where sterling will stretch further than a year ago
Families hoping to swap the UK winter for a sunshine break abroad during half term will find the best bargains in Cyprus and the Canary Islands, according to new research by Post Office Travel Money. A survey of 10 winter sun resorts found that UK tourists will be hard pressed to find lower prices than in Paphos, 2017’s joint European Capital of Culture1.
By combining the cost of a one week holiday package (based on four sharing) with a daily family meal, range of drinks, suncream and insect repellent, the overall price in Paphos is just £1,130 for a family of four – almost a third cheaper than in Lanzarote and virtually half the price in Tenerife (£2,148).
Further afield, Post Office Travel Money compared the same holiday costs in six long haul holiday resorts and found that Cancun is best value for a winter sun beach holiday at £2,106 for a family of four.
Mexico’s peso is the only currency weaker against the pound than a year ago, giving UK tourists around 2.5 per cent more cash to spend than in early 2016, compared with over 12 per cent less in the USA and Caribbean.That weakness has helped to keep prices lower in Cancun than in Caribbean competitors like the Dominican Republic, where a week in Punta Cana costs £2,791 for two adults and two children – a third more than in Cancun.
Travelling to the Far East, Post Office Travel Money found that a holiday would cost families less in Phuket (£2,229) than in Penang, Malaysia (£2,382).
Although the US dollar remains strong against sterling, local meal and drinks prices in Orlando have stayed on par with a year ago and the competitively-priced half term holiday package (£1,573) means the world’s theme park capital is an affordable option at £2,205 for a family.
The high cost of meals and drinks in Jumeirah Beach - £1,493 for one week - made Dubai by far the most expensive destination in the survey at £3,277.
Andrew Brown of Post Office Travel Money said:“Sterling’s recent rally means that holidaymakers will not have to dig quite so far into their pockets as they would have had to
do a few weeks ago.However, there are big differences in prices among winter sun resorts
and these can really have an impact on the overall holiday budget.
“Bargain-hunters will be well advised to add the cost of meals and drinks in resorts to the price of a holiday package to find the destination that will give them the best overall value.In places like Dubai where meal and drinks prices are high, booking all-inclusive packages will keep their costs down.”
The Post Office is the UK’s leading provider of foreign currency, offering euro on demand at over 10,000 branches and US dollars at 4,000 branches.They can also be ordered online at postoffice.co.uk for same day ‘click and collect’ at almost 3,000 branches as well as next day collection at any branch or for home delivery. 1,600 larger Post Office Branches stock 30 leading currencies while up to 70 currencies can be pre-ordered at over 11,500 branches or online at postoffice.co.uk/travel for next day branch or home delivery.
ENDS
Notes to Editors:
¹ Package prices were sourced online from Travel Supermarket. Prices are based on the lowest available one week 3* holidays flying from London on 11/12 February. All prices were accurate at the time of research and are based on a family of four sharing a room. Tourist items are taken from the Post Office Worldwide Holiday Costs Barometer, except for Tenerife and Lanzarote, where research was conducted independently online.
| Cyprus | Spain | Mexico | Malta | Spain | |
| Paphos | Lanzarote | Cancun | Sliema | Tenerife | |
| 14 cups of coffee(café/bar) | £32.59 | £21.52 | £24.59 | £14.76 | £17.22 |
| 7 bottles of beer (café/bar) | £15.99 | £15.37 | £13.41 | £13.53 | £11.68 |
| 7 glasses of wine(café/bar) | £18.45 | £15.37 | £33.53 | £15.37 | £21.52 |
| 14 cans Coca-Cola (café /bar) | £25.21 | £24.59 | £21.23 | £20.29 | £18.45 |
| 7 bottles of still mineral water 1.5 litre (supermarket) | £1.84 | £5.78 | £5.59 | £3.07 | £4.30 |
| Suncream SPF15 (supermarket) | £6.24 | £9.93 | £7.94 | £9.62 | £9.93 |
| Insect repellent (supermarket) | £2.50 | £3.35 | £3.27 | £4.35 | £3.35 |
| 7 x 3 course family meal for 4 with bottle of wine/soft drinks | £319.72 | £391.84 | £423.72 | £384.89 | £484.50 |
| Total cost of living | £422.54 | £487.75 | £533.29 | £465.88 | £570.94 |
| One-week family package holiday (2 x adults and 2 x children) | £708.00 | £1,176.00 | £1,573.00 | £1,647.88 | £1,577.00 |
| TOTAL | £1,130.54 | £1,663.75 | £2,106.29 | £2,113.76 | £2,147.94 |
| USA | Thailand | Malaysia | Dominican Rep | Dubai | |
| Orlando | Phuket | Penang | Punta Cana | Jumeirah | |
| 14 cups of coffee(café/bar) | £22.79 | £32.11 | £36.97 | £19.50 | £57.28 |
| 7 bottles of beer (café/bar) | £28.49 | £18.59 | £40.33 | £16.90 | £71.61 |
| 7 glasses of wine(café/bar) | £39.89 | £27.89 | £45.37 | £45.51 | £71.61 |
| 14 cans Coca-Cola (café /bar) | £34.19 | £15.21 | £9.87 | £16.90 | £70.01 |
| 7 bottles of still mineral water 1.5 litre (supermarket) | £11.40 | £3.55 | £78.98 | £2.60 | £2.39 |
| Suncream SPF15 (supermarket) | £6.51 | £3.86 | £4.32 | £6.50 | £15.91 |
| Insect repellent (supermarket) | £4.07 | £2.54 | £3.26 | £5.57 | £11.37 |
| 7 x 3 course family meal for 4 with bottle of wine/soft drinks | £484.37 | £574.51 | £481.25 | £632.68 | £1,182.29 |
| Total cost of living | £631.72 | £678.27 | £700.34 | £746.16 | £1,482.47 |
| One-week family package holiday (2 x adults and 2 x children) | £1,573.00 | £1,551.00 | £1,682.00 | £2,045.00 | £1,784.00 |
| TOTAL | £2,204.72 | £2,229.27 | £2,382.34 | £2,791.16 | £3,266.47 |
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