How to Find the Best Holiday Offers and Beat the Credit Crunch Blues

Turn on the news and all you will see is talk of economic downturns, the credit crunch and redundancies. It is enough to drive even the most positive minded people to a depressive state. It’s not all bad news though.

When the global economy hits the skids, businesses need your money more than ever. This means there are some fantastic deals to be found if you hunt around and there is no better way to beat those blues than to take a luxury holiday, at a bargain price.

If you know when and where you want to go, a holiday comparison website will help you find the best price for your trip. These websites will have access to data from many of the major tour operators, airlines and hotels. This enables them to get up to date prices and availability and then help you compare what you get for your money. Some comparison websites will also build you holidays on the fly by combining flights and hotel prices to create bespoke packages.

If you’ve got the time to do your own research, you can try to book your holiday by purchasing your flights and accommodation separately. You can find some great deals on flights through comparison websites, but you can also go directly to the airlines and you will often save a bit of money. Hotel costs are a bit hit and miss depending on where you stay. You can sometimes snap up a real bargain with an online discount from the hotel’s website.

You could also arrange your transfers when you land and pay in the local currency, but make sure you are aware of any reports of airport transfer scams so you don’t get caught out. If you are moving around on your holiday, you could save a bit of cash by paying walk in rates at hotels. This is especially useful if you are visiting during a low tourist season, but make sure there is enough availability otherwise you could end up without a roof over your head or paying a high mark-up.

When and where you choose will have a huge impact on how much you pay. If you are flexible with your dates and destinations, you can really save a lot. Many tour operators and travel agencies will have last minute deals where they need to fill seats on planes or beds in hotels. By leaving it as late as possible, you could find yourself on a beach in the Maldives that costs less than a domestic holiday. On the other hand if you book well in advance you can also save on the cost of your holiday. Many tour operators will have great rates on next year’s holidays to get places booked early.

Other ways to get the best holiday offers include, going direct to tour operator websites to take advantage of any online discounts, using cashback or voucher codes for online savings, going where other people won’t e.g. Mexico after swine flu, Sri Lanka after the war, and travelling when most people can’t e.g. before and after school holidays.