Talk to me about package holidays

[Bobje]

Please tell me all the pros and cons - the good, the bad and the ugly.
We are usually long haulers and everything booked independently.
Have never done a package holiday.

Best company? Best time to book for the best deals?
We are open to any suggestions destination wise.

We always booked flights and accommodation separately prior to Covid. Weirdly we had a package booked through Kenwood for a trip to Thailand in 2020 which we had to cancel so we were really pleased we'd booked a package.

We then had our next two independently booked holiday flights cancelled in 2021 ( Covid travel restrictions) and then again in 2022 ( the summer of flight chaos) so we switched to packages.

Did a Tui villa holiday which was great and then Jet2 ( made the mistake of booking all inc which isn't out thing but apart from that all went well). Have done two Jet2 packages this year. They do seem to be very reliable and offer great last minute deals and discounts.

We've used TUI lots in the past and have been very happy with them but I hear Jet 2 are good. Often you can get a good deal and as others have said the real benefit is that your whole holiday is covered should anything go wrong and the ease of having your transfers all organised for you.

We've done plenty of self catering or bed and breakfast style packages through TUI so we can get out and about and eat in other places. To be honest though we've also done all inclusives that when we've priced up have been worth it just for drinks and the ease of kids having snacks, it hasn't restricted us to only eating at the hotel and we've eaten out lots of other places too but it means the option is there if we want it.

I would look at somewhere like TUI's website and price up some different options for room only, half board, all inclusive etc and go from there. Look at reviews and we usually pick a hotel that is close to a town rather than very isolated so it's easy to get out and about and explore on local buses etc.

We booked our first package holiday to the Canaries for October half term using TUI. It worked out a lot cheaper than doing it independently. It's been a really busy year. DS is heading off shortly for his gap year and we just wanted something easy where we could spend some time together. We're not into sitting at the pool all day so are planning to spend most of the days doing activities. Have gone AI for the first time too to take the stress out of finding good restaurants. Could all go horribly wrong but it's only a week and the hotel gets great reviews for its food.

OP, have a look at jet2holidays. You can go all over Europe and book all sorts of accommodation, SC, villa, AI, etc etc, really good service, luggage allowance included, often cheaper than doing the same thing independently.

And for those of those who think package holidays = laying around in the sun getting pissed interspersed with fighting over chips at the buffet, here's a couple of the 'package holidays' that we've been on over the last few years.

Villagg Tal Fanal - Gozo hotels | Jet2holidays

Villas Puerto Rubicon - 2 Bedroom Villa | Jet2Villas | Jet2holidays

We normally do independent long haul travel but a little late summer sun was required last month so booked a week in Cyprus (h/b in hotel) with Jet2 holidays, no issues, only drawback for us was the coach transfer, would be quicker to get a taxi but it was included. May have been able to pay less by booking all separately but didn’t need the hassle.
Looking to do another week closer to Xmas now, will use Jet2 again if we stay short haul.

For those stating packages are cheaper, they can be, but not always. You have a third party company involved, and, understandably, they are there to make money. In addition airport transfers often take you on an unwanted local tour to several drop off points.

Even when the tour company name is blazoned on the side of an aircraft, the airline is a separate entity.

As for greater protection, BA Holidays, for example charge 60% if you cancel within 28 days. There are lots of places on the likes of Booking.com and Expedia etc who offer you free cancellation up to 24 hours before. In addition flights can often be changed for a small fee which is likely to be less than a travel insurance excess.

And always book on a credit card.

Depends on the type of holiday and location, something like an AI that doesn't need much planning or autonomy for myself we tend to book a package. I've also found it cheaper to do a flight/hotel package on our last couple of US trips (BA have been competitive the last couple of times I've booked).

Sometimes though package holiday options are restrictive, I've noticed not all flight options are always available and post Covid it's harder to get a decent timed flight, if that's important to me that's when I have booked independently and separately.

We've done both independent and package, recently we've used Jet2 a few times and I couldn't fault them.

Obviously you still need to research/check reviews. For the posts talking about restrictions around AI (I do quite like an AI) and not being able to select what or when you eat you can always find this information before you book. Some AI hotels are more restrictive than others.

With Jet2 we always upgrade to private transfers, we always do. I think it's usually about an extra £100.

We book package holidays. Everything is booked at the same time, one company to deal with and I feel the protection is better. If something goes wrong you only need to contact one company rather than a few different ones so for us package holidays are easier.

we’ve used Jet2 and Tui over the last few years and have had no complaints.

Pre covid I lived overseas and booked everything separately, but now investigating packages due to cancellation protection. As pp mentioned it doesn’t have to be restrictive. We booked a Eurostar package which was cheaper than booking separately and as it was b and b just did our own thing every day. Have booked with Jet 2 for next year, again b and b and with private transfers and interested to see how that works out.

Every time I've looked into a package it always works out more expensive (and with fewer options) than if I'd just booked it myself so that's what I end up doing 😂

Pro is the ease by far - you get to the airport, they handle everything else eg if there's a flight delay they change your transfers etc. AI means you can budget ahead of time though you can have a package self catering/b&b if that's your preference

Con is they only have certain itineraries though less of an issue now.

As for cost, which is cheaper like for like varies, I find packages are usually a little cheaper at the 4 star level but at 5 star, especially long haul i can usually do better. If you like multi centred usually doing it yourself is preferable whereas for one hotel it's easier to go with the company.

We typically use TUI, partly because they usually have flights from our local airport as opposed to driving to Gatwick 3 hours away! I normally book last minute for a good deal

Basically it's swings and roundabouts, always check Tripadvisor for independent information

Hello all!
Was surprised to see this on here, a big shout out to @surreygirl1987 for the bump, hope all these replies help you too!

Thanks for all the responses, very helpful to a package holiday virgin like me.

@tanstaafl sorry, of course that would help wouldn’t it. So “we” are two fifty somethings with 10yr DC. Have travelled extensively long haul but have not done much short haul, and totally new to the world of package holidays.
We wouldn’t be into AI I don’t think, as part of the appeal for travelling for us is to eat like the locals do.
It’s somewhat a joke in our extended family and friends group that DC always ask them to send “food photos” of their travels! Local food and culture very much dictates our holidays.

Thanks so far for all your help everyone.

The protection with a package isn't in terms of if you need to cancel, it's in case they need to. I work for a small Tour Operator that operates charter flights and on a few occasions where we've had to cancel flights (Covid, an airline going into administration) our package clients had everything sorted for them and a full no quibble refund issued to them within 14 days. Our flight only clients had the flights refunded but some of them had awful trouble getting money back from hotels and hire cars and what not, even during Covid when the hotels and car hire companies were closed and couldn't possibly provide the service. We also struggled to get money back from hotels in some cases, but that was our problem, not the clients'.

Obviously not all TOs are the same, but in terms of only one point of contact and everything being under the same protected umbrella, a package becomes worth the potential extra money if and when shit hits the fan (in much the same way as having insurance does, vs not forking out for it).

@FettleOfKish - Is the same protection not afforded with a credit card booking? The major credit card issuers will not go to the wall. And there have been instances of people waiting ages for refunds after a tour operator collapse.

In addition there have been cases in recent years of hoteliers turning people onto the streets following a tour operator collapse.

One point of contact in a defunct company is not the loveliest thing to be hanging on to.

In addition, with EU legacy regulations being reviewed after Brexit, we have no indication whether such consumer rights will be maintained.