Three ways to cut your holiday travel costs

Holidays can put a big dent in your annual budget. But despite the recession, most of us still consider a week in the sun a necessity rather than a luxury. So how can you cut your holiday costs but still enjoy your break? Ruth Jackson explains three simple ways to get away for less.

By Ruth Jackson-Kirby

published 6 July 2010

in Features

Holidays can put a big dent in your annual budget. But despite the recession, most of us still consider a week in the sun a necessity rather than a luxury.

So how can you cut your holiday costs but still enjoy your break? The best place to start is to cut the cost of getting to your destination. Here are three tips on how to do it.

Hunt down the cheapest flights

Since the mid-90s the growth of budget airlines has meant we can all fly abroad for a fraction of what it used to cost. But with so many airlines trying to undercut each other, how do you know you are getting the best possible price?

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Try Jumblefly. This is the website to use if you know where you want to go but don't know which airlines fly there. Tell it where you want to fly to and from, and it will list all the budget airlines that operate on that route. Then you can check each carrier's prices to make sure you get the cheapest tickets.

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The second website to save in your favourites folder is Skyscanner

. This is a price comparison tool for flights. You tell it where you want to go and when, and it will find the cheapest options . But it's not foolproof it doesn't have access to every airline, so use it alongside Jumblefly for the best results.

There is another very useful Skyscanner feature. If you don't know where you want to go you can put in your departure airport and select 'any' for destination. It will then bring up the cheapest destinations available on the dates you want to travel.

Similarly if you know where you want to go, but don't mind when, you can do a specific month or even year search and Skyscanner will tell you the cheapest times to visit your destination. Just be sure there isn't a hidden reason for the price dip such as hurricane season.

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Finally, keep an eye out for sales. The big names such as Virgin Atlantic and British Airways have regular sales that can turn up some great deals. To make sure you don't miss out, sign up to get email notifications from their websites.

Get to the airport for less

Whether you drive to the airport or take the train,there is a good chance you are being ripped off.

Turn up at Gatwick airport for example and pay to park your car and you'll be hit for £9.50 a day in their long-stay car park. That's £133 for two weeks. But if you book just one day in advance, that drops to £100. Regardless of which airport you use, you can shave a big chunk off the price of parking this way. Go to the airport's website and look for the parking links.

An altogether cheaper option is to take the train. Just make sure you don't get caught in the "Express" trap. Several of the big airports offer 'Express' train services but these are usually substantially more expensive than just taking the standard train.

For example, a return on the Gatwick Express from London Victoria costs £25.80. An open return on the standard train costs £12.50. And the difference in time isn't huge, especially given you'll be waiting around to check in once you get to the airport. The Gatwick Express takes 30 minutes, whereas the normal train takes 30-50 minutes depending on the service you book. It's a similar story with the Heathrow Express £32 for the "Express" 15-minute journey, or £15.80 for the "Connect" 30-minute trip.

Find a cheap hire car

Gone are the days when hiring a car meant ringing up just Avis or Hertz. Now there are hundreds of firms offering to rent you a car, and, as a result, prices have plummeted. To find the best deal, visit Holiday Autos. The website helps you compare the price of car hire from many different car rental firms.

And make sure you book in advance. At peak holiday times its not unusual for car rental firms to have all their cars booked. So as soon as you've booked your flights book your car rental.

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Please note: MoneyWeek Ltd receives commission from Skyscanner and Holiday Autos.

Ruth Jackson-Kirby is a freelance personal finance journalist with 17 years’ experience, writing about everything from savings accounts and credit cards to pensions, property and pet insurance.

Ruth started her career at MoneyWeek after graduating with an MA from the University of St Andrews, and she continues to contribute regular articles to our personal finance section. After leaving MoneyWeek she went on to become deputy editor of Moneywise before becoming a freelance journalist.

Ruth writes regularly for national publications including The Sunday Times, The Times, The Mail on Sunday and Good Housekeeping, among many other titles both online and offline.