As schools break up for summer, a new report by the Post Office shows that breaks over the school holidays in Europe are set to be cheaper this year than they were in 2013.
The report – which looks at the average cost of a number of key holiday spends including a meal out and insect repellent in 14 resorts – shows that falling prices in many resorts surveyed combined with the strong pound led to savings in most destinations.
Bulgaria’s Sunny Beach and the Costa de Sol top the Family Holiday Report Barometer 2014 as the cheapest resorts, with the holiday basket in the Balkan resort costing just £65.97, while Spain’s sunshine coast costs came in at £79.69 – a saving of 18.1% and 7.2 per cent respectively.
The two were also top of the family meal costs surveyed in the report, with a 3-course feast for a family of four with a bottle of wine and kids drinks costing £32.60 on the Costa Del Sol and just 6p more expensive in Bulgaria.
Other resorts showing huge savings were Crete, which comes third in the overall survey with a basket cost of £87.15 and one of the biggest savings, a whopping 26.9 per cent down over 2013 prices.
And while Croatian resort Porec had one of the most expensive baskets at £105.25, prices there are 31.4 per cent down on 2013.
Of the 14 resorts surveyed, 11 were found to be cheaper than in 2013, while two (Spain’s Costa Blanca and Malta’s Sliema) were newly surveyed for 2014.
Andrew Brown of Post Office Travel Money said: “For those on a strict budget Sunny Beach and the Costa del Sol look to be unbeatable value. However, competition between restaurants in Sorrento and Porec means that families visiting these resorts will pay a lot less than a year ago.”
Majorca, the 12th most expensive resort with a basket cost of £129.81, was the only resort to show an increase over 2013 prices, with a huge 25.8 per cent hike.
Resorts surveyed were Bulgaria’s Sunny Beach, the Costa del Sol, Crete, Marmaris in Turkey, the Algarve, Ayia Napa in Cyprus, Spain’s Costa Blanca, Porec in Croatia, Malta’s Sliema, Orlando, Majorca and Italy’s Sorrento.
A full list of results can be seen below or at www.postoffice.co.uk/familyholidays2014
