Press release -
Turkey is best value for a half term trip
But families are advised to combine package costs with meal and drink prices in resorts abroad to find the best half term holiday bargains
- Families will benefit from the buoyant pound on half term holidays as strong sterling brings prices down in most resorts surveyed by Post Office Travel Money
- Post Office reports rising foreign currency sales as traffic light changes fuel demand
- Turkey and Portugal top survey of 10 destinations but there are big cost variations
For those planning half term trips, sterling’s rise in value against European currencies means Britons who choose carefully will see their holiday cash stretch further. Although costs have risen in most resorts since its last half term survey in 2019, prices collected by Post Office Travel Money have found that families will pay up to 18 per cent less in seven of the ten autumn sun destinations surveyed as a result of the stronger pound1.
Nick Boden, Head of Post Office Travel Money, which accounts for one-in-four UK foreign exchange transactions, said: “Sterling has remained buoyant this year despite the difficulties that Britain has faced and is currently worth around eight per cent more against both the euro and the Croatian kuna than a year ago. This has had a positive impact on holiday demand and Post Office branches have seen big rises in currency sales in advance of the half term holiday.
“In September, Euro sales were more than treble those earlier in the summer as well as being double the volume sold last September. Croatia’s kuna has risen to third place in our list of currency bestsellers and sales have mushroomed by over 1,200 per cent year-on-year in the last month. Although sterling has surged 25 per cent year-on-year against the Turkish lira, we have yet to see a similar rise in sales but this could happen now that Turkey has been released from the government red list.”
The Post Office Travel Money survey makes it clear that Turkey is best value for a half term trip. It found that prices in top resort Marmaris are less than half those in every other destination except the Algarve, second-placed in the survey. The cost of meals and drinks in Marmaris adds up to £34.98, 10 per cent less than in 2019 when the survey was last conducted.
Despite registering a 14 per cent rise in prices to £47.09 for the barometer basket, families on half term holidays will find the costs in the Algarve lowest by far in the eurozone. The Portuguese favourite is a third cheaper than Madeira (£71.01), Spain’s Costa del Sol (£71.03) or Paphos, Cyprus (£70.85), which registered the biggest fall of 18 per cent in the cost of meals and drinks.
The most expensive of the ten destinations surveyed was Porec in Croatia, where prices have risen by four per cent to £91.29. However, that position is reversed when a week’s worth of meals and drinks are combined with the cost of a one-week package for four.
Nick Boden explains: “It is really important to factor in all spending to get a true idea of what a holiday will actually cost. Families who add the holiday package price to the charges they will incur for meals and drinks before comparing destinations are most likely to strike the best half term bargain. For example, while resort costs in Croatia’s Istrian peninsula are the most expensive of those we surveyed, its average package price was second cheapest to Turkey. Equally, while resort prices have fallen sharply in Cyprus, the cost of a one week package was double that in the three cheapest destinations, making it the most expensive half term holiday choice overall.”
When Post Office Travel Money calculated the average cost of a one week package deal for two adults and two children, it found that families could easily find a holiday package for around £1,500-£1,600 in Turkey (£1,507), Croatia (£1,510) and the Algarve (£1,598)2. However, a shortage of accommodation in western Cyprus means they can expect to pay an average of £3,626. With the exception of Corfu (£2,739), that is over £1,000 more than in the other destinations.
As a result, while Turkey (£1,766.31) and the Algarve (£1,941.04) remain cheapest for a half term break when travel, accommodation, meals and drinks are combined, Porec in Croatia jumps up to third place (£2,177.80). Along with Madeira (£3,127.83), the eastern Med autumn sun destinations of Malta (Sliema: £3,034.07), Greece (Corfu: £3,127.83) and Cyprus (Paphos: £4152,01) are most expensive.
The Post Office is the UK’s leading foreign currency provider, offering around 60 currencies for pre-order at around 7,000 Post Office branches or online at www.postoffice.co.uk/travel for next day branch or home delivery. 3,600 larger Post Office branches stock the leading currencies and around 7,000 offer euros over the counter without pre-order. These can also be ordered online for same day ‘click and collect’ at selected branches, next day collection at any branch or home delivery.
Half term holidaymakers can get even more cash to spend when they purchase Post Office Travel Insurance between now and 31 October 2021. Holidaymakers who buy a single trip or annual multi-trip travel insurance policy will receive a Post Office Travel Money Payout Voucher of £10 or £20 respectively to put on a new or existing prepaid Travel Money Card.
Ends
Notes to Editors:
For more information relating to the Half Term Travel Insurance offer please visit: https://www.postoffice.co.uk/travel-insurance
1 Post Office half term barometer of costs for meals and drinks. Prices were suppled by tourist boards of participating destinations, except Majorca and Tenerife, which were researched online.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| TURKEY | PORTUGAL | CYPRUS | MADEIRA | SPAIN | |
| ITEM | Marmaris | Algarve | Paphos | Funchal | Costa del Sol |
| Cup of coffee | £1.34 | £0.61 | £2.09 | £1.66 | £1.13 |
| Bottle of beer/lager (café/bar) | £1.79 | £1.05 | £2.09 | £1.75 | £2.09 |
| Bottle/can Coca-Cola (café/bar) | £0.71 | £1.31 | £2.18 | £1.75 | £1.48 |
| Glass of wine | £2.90 | £1.09 | £2.53 | £3.80 | £2.27 |
| 3-course family meal incl. wine/soft drinks | £28.24 | £43.03 | £61.97 | £62.05 | £64.06 |
| Total cost of meals & drinks | £34.98 | £47.09 | £70.85 | £71.01 | £71.03 |
| % rise/fall since 2019 | -10% | +14% | -18% | -4% | +4% |
| 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | |
| BALEARIC ISLES | CANARY ISLES | MALTA | GREECE | CROATIA | |
| ITEM | Majorca | Tenerife | Sliema | Corfu | Porec |
| Cup of coffee | £1.96 | £1.31 | £1.75 | £2.62 | £1.32 |
| Bottle of beer/lager (café/bar) | £2.71 | £2.62 | £2.49 | £3.23 | £2.53 |
| Bottle/can Coca-Cola (café/bar) | £2.53 | £1.75 | £1.83 | £2.05 | £2.77 |
| Glass of wine | £3.27 | £2.40 | £3.45 | £3.49 | £3.85 |
| 3-course family meal incl. wine/soft drinks | £63.45 | £70.08 | £71.35 | £69.82 | £80.82 |
| Total cost of meals & drinks | £73.92 | £78.16 | £80.87 | £81.21 | £91.29 |
| % rise/fall since 2019 | -4% | -7% | -1% | -7% | +4% |
2Post Office half term barometer combining the cost of meals and drinks for one week with the average price of a three-star half term package for a family of two adults and two children departing from a London airport on either 23 or 24 October. Packages sourced from Travelsupermarket.com
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| TURKEY | PORTUGAL | CROATIA | SPAIN | BALEARIC ISLES | |
| ITEM | Marmaris | Algarve | Porec | Costa del Sol | Majorca |
| 14 cups of coffee | £18.77 | £8.55 | £18.55 | £15.88 | £27.49 |
| 7 bottles of beer/lager (café/bar) | £12.51 | £7.33 | £17.71 | £14.66 | £18.94 |
| 14 bottles/cans Coca-Cola (café/bar) | £10.01 | £18.33 | £38.79 | £20.77 | £35.43 |
| 7 glasses of wine | £20.33 | £7.64 | £26.98 | £15.88 | £22.91 |
| 7 3-course family meals incl. wine/soft drinks | £197.69 | £301.19 | £565.77 | £448.42 | £444.14 |
| Total cost of meals & drinks | £259.31 | £343.04 | £667.80 | £515.61 | £548.91 |
| One week package for 2 adults/2 children | £1,507.00 | £1,598.00 | £1,510.00 | £2,037.00 | £2,146.00 |
| Total holiday cost for one week | £1,766.31 | £1,941.04 | £2,177.80 | £2,552.61 | £2,694.91 |
| 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | |
| CANARY ISLES | MALTA | MADEIRA | GREECE | CYPRUS | |
| ITEM | Tenerife | Sliema | Funchal | Corfu | Paphos |
| 14 cups of coffee | £18.33 | £24.44 | £23.22 | £36.66 | £29.32 |
| 7 bottles of beer/lager (café/bar) | £18.33 | £17.41 | £12.22 | £22.60 | £14.66 |
| 14 bottles/cans Coca-Cola (café/bar) | £24.44 | £25.66 | £24.44 | £28.71 | £30.55 |
| 7 glasses of wine | £16.80 | £24.13 | £26.58 | £24.44 | £17.72 |
| 7 3-course family meals incl. wine/soft drinks | £490.57 | £499.43 | £434.37 | £488.74 | £433.76 |
| Total cost of meals & drinks | £568.47 | £591.07 | £520.83 | £601.15 | £526.01 |
| One week package for 2 adults/2 children | £2,347.00 | £2,443.00 | £2,607.00 | £2,739.00 | £3,626.00 |
| Total holiday cost for one week | £2,915.47 | £3,034.07 | £3,127.83 | £3,340.15 | £4,152.01 |
About the Post Office
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