Family holidays can be some of the most relaxing times of the year. Not only that, but they create beautiful memories too. However, they can come in with a hefty price tag. Having a perfect cheap family holiday is far from easy!
There are a couple of tips that can help you find a perfect cheap family holiday. So you’ll be packing your weekend bag and tanking up the car, or getting your passport is in order in no time at all.
- Many hotels can feel at the lap of luxury, but you might really end up paying the price just for the preference. Rather than booking an overpriced hotel in Spain, try checking things like Airbnb or Spanish holiday lets instead. While it is true that the perks of hotels are that all you can eat, and the bars, and the childcare. The cost, when pitched against a self-service apartment, can be astronomical. For larger families, you can all chip in and book a lovely villa. If, however, you’re in smaller group couples or solo traveling, then small apartments tend to be on the cheapest side.
- Apparently, experts believe that there is a golden booking date, and that is 53 days before your desired departure. On that note, try to keep your booking on a Tuesday or Wednesday. This avoids weekends and bank holidays, which tend to be the highest price.
- If you have decided on a package holiday, spend plenty of time on comparison websites. If you can, be a bit more flexible on your departure times and dates. You might be surprised how much you can trim off the cost. Create multiple accounts with a few different travel agents. Opt to get the offers, discounts, and sales sent directly to your email address. You will have to be quick though they snapped up pretty fast.
- Haggle. Don’t be afraid to haggle with travel agents, all package holiday providers. You ideally want to be armed with as much information as you possibly need to get the sale price that you want. Of course, this doesn’t always work, but the trick here is to make sure you have noted the total cost for:
- Meals
- Tour operator
- Transfers
- Extras like kids go free or on-site activities
- Price
- Drop polite calls to travel agents and given the opportunity to beat any quotes that you have. In general, it’s better to ask for any discounts per person rather than the group as a whole. The reduction will then seem smaller one broken down per person. However, you’re still making a considerable saving.
- Can you get a refund on your ticket price? Most airlines will have a refund policy if the price drops between when you purchased the flights and when you actually fly. Once you have made the purchase of your flights, set up a price alert to get updates sent directly to your phone. If the price appears cheaper, without being on sale, you can often call to claim a voucher for the difference in the price. Check with your airline before booking to see if that option is available to you.
- Travel insurance is not a luxury or an unnecessary item. Although there are plenty of simple tips, you can follow to keep your friends and family safe while you travel. Sometimes accidents do happen. One of the most general pieces of advice is to purchase the right travel insurance for your trip. Many people who book travel insurance don’t entirely book it in the right way. For a start, make sure it’s booked for the moment you book your holiday. This can help protect your money if someone is due to go on the holiday falls ill, or if for whatever reason, you need to cancel.
Of course, one of the cheapest ways is to have a great family holiday, which is the state in whichever country you already live in. You can go by train or car and really take your time to explore. When it comes to car safety for kids on long journeys, there are few things that you need to take into consideration.
During the long journeys, it is advised that you take a break for any children that are in a car seat. Typically it is suggested that you only travel for a maximum of two hours and stop for a short while and take your baby out of the car seat. When your children get a little bit bigger bear in mind, the seat belts are designed for adults, not children. So make sure you have the appropriate car seat.
With great and inexpensive family holidays it comes down to planning. So take your time, do your research, and save those pounds.
We do have a few other pieces of travel advice for families. So do feel free to check some of our other thoughts out:
Tips to Travel with Kids
5 ideas to enable you to take your family away without the stress
Going away with your family shouldn't be so stressful. These 5 ideas enable you to take time away stress free!
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Cheers for coming.
Helen
Helen
Helen is a mum to two, social media consultant, and website editor; and this site is (we think) the only Social Enterprise parenting magazine! Since giving up being a business analyst when juggling travel, work and kids proved too complicated, she founded KiddyCharts so she could be with her kids, and use those grey cells at the same time. KiddyCharts has reach of over 1.1million across social and the site. The blog works with big family brands (including travel) to help promote their services, as well as offering free resources to parents of kids under 10. It gives 51%+ profits to Reverence for Life, who fund a number of important initiatives in Africa, including bringing running water and basic equipment to a school in Tanzania. Helen has worked as a digital marketing consultant (IDM qualified) with various organisations, including Channel Mum, Truprint, Talk to Mums, and Micro Scooters. She loves to be creative in the brand campaigns she works on. Get in touch TODAY!