Last minute cheap holidays - still a thing?

[Hummingbird233]

We haven’t taken our kids abroad yet due to the cost but they’re getting older and we’re all craving a bit of sunshine and that holiday feel.

I wondered; are cheap last minute deals still a thing for the summer holidays? We are 2 adults and 3 children, and we really don’t mind where in the world we go. Very flexible on hotel standard (as long as it’s clean, we don’t mind basic) and our work is flexible so we can swap out annual leave around fairly last minute.

A friend has told my husband of a cheap last minute deal he had, but I wondered if this is generally still a good way to go or if we’ll likely end up with no options?!

Looking to spend £3,000 max for a week. Ideally all inclusive but bed and breakfast would be fine.

What do you think? Have you done it in recent years?

When I travel with my kids, I usually start by finding out what they’d really like to see or do. Then I look at possible destinations, work out what’s realistic, and start searching for holiday deals that fit.

I’ve found it’s much easier to choose a destination first and then look for a good deal, rather than letting a cheap deal decide where we go.

Although I have to say, travelling with kids is never really a relaxing holiday! It’s usually exhausting, but worth it. 😂

I book all my holidays myself multiple destinations using sky scanner and air bnbs etc. on the beach is quite good but the standards can be hit and miss. There are some places where packages trump booking separately Mexico is one of them. We managed a holiday to Alicante in April 24 degrees and was 75 each flights ( exit seats) 400 for the air BnB. It does take a lot of looking and comparing but this is my hobby so I don’t mind 🤣

Not based in the UK, but we used to do last minute and had some excellent bargain holidays to Kenya, Tobago and Sri Lanka. However, this was over 25 years ago and the rules around what could be sold as last minute were quite strict. One of them was that the departure date could only be within the next 10 to 14 days.
These days many so-called Last Minute sites lure you in with bargain prices, but when you put in the dates you want, either say nothing is available or give you offers for months in advance, which clearly is not last minute.
In addition, offers and prices seem to change, site by site, if you search continuously.
Best approach is to clear your search history before each search and enter something like "1 week, Greece, all inclusive, 3 travellers from x to y" disabling AI in google and see what comes up.
Splitting the flight/accommodation can also be interesting, as can going directly to airline websites, since they can also offer hotels.
Sadly the days of 2 weeks in Kenya, half board, for £650 are long gone :-(

I'm a massive holiday bargain hunter as need to see the sun at least 3 times a year and the only way we can afford it is by getting prices right down.

I've not found last minute deals the cheapest for a while... It's also pretty much always cheaper to book flights and hotel separately. If I were you I'd stalk flights on Google flights looking at dates that would work for you then you get a feel about which routes are cheapest. Bargains we've had in the summer recently have been Geneva, Faro and Barcelona.

Hotels are always cheapest if you book direct so look on Booking.com or Hotels.com, see what you like the look of them look at the hotel website for best price.

This way we've literally paid £2.5k for a holiday that's £5k on Jet2 or TUI.