Package Holiday Virgin

[DorisDayandNight]

For various complicated reasons we're planning a 7-10 day holiday around the end of August but won't be able to book until the end of July. In the past we've done fairly active holidays with lots of sightseeing - city breaks, self catering or camping (mobile homes). This year I feel like we need a proper feet up, sit on a lounger beach/pool type holiday. It'll be me, DH and DS (11). Don't mind where we go as long as it's sunny and near a sandy beach/ restaurants etc. DS is a good swimmer and keen phone user so his requests have been good pool, good wifi and ideally possible snorkelling!

We've never done a package holiday before and I am a bit staggered at the prices. Will they only go up from now? Am I being totally realistic in thinking there'll be any last minutes bargains/availability by the end of July? I keep hearing about friends who got amazing deals but I must be missing something (or they're exaggerating).

Budget is about £1500. Camping (mobile home) is still an option but they seem to be getting booked up and I'm afraid there'll be nothing left by the time we can book.

Any advice? Secret cheap holiday tricks or just tell me to get realistic!

I think cheap deals are gone now because of the issues in Sharm plus people are reluctant to travel to turkey and possibly Greece. Three of you for £1500 is very tight with someone like Thomson. Sorry you coul look at building your own package on something like ice lolly or on the beach but I think your budget is possibly too small for 7-10 days in August for three people.

I was rather afraid you would say that.

OK a package may be out. Does anyone have any bright ideas on how to get a week or more in the sun in school holidays close to a sandy beach for under £1500. We're happy to fly or drive across Europe or can go from pretty much any UK airport.

We can be fairly flexible about dates between Mon 14th Aug and Mon 4th Sept when the schools go back here. But as I said above we can't book until the end of July. Help!

Look at On The Beach website. I have just briefly searched a package holiday with your rough requirements and there are several coming up within your budget for Costa Brava beach resorts.

Can you fly from Scotland? We're flying from Edinburgh mid august and it was miles cheaper than flying from our local airport because the schools will have gone back in Scotland then.

Thanks I'll have a look on there. I have seen a few around within our price range. I suppose my question is what is the chance that they'll still be there mid July?

Yes we could probably get to Edinburgh. I'll add that into my plans thanks.

Is the issue that you can't set the dates until the end of July or you don't have the money until then?

Jet2holidays can be good value, you don't have to pay all of the cost straight away, offer free child places and i saw this place recommended the other day on here.

www.jet2holidays.com/balearics/majorca/cala-dor/cala-dor-playa-apartments

Or you could search for late beach deals and see what comes up - even though it's not late yet, you can search for any date.

Mallorca is great for snorkelling, especially Cala D'Or. Lots of little rocky coves. We've been at the very end of August and it does start to get a bit cheaper then (we are a child free couple and Do Not pay school holiday prices or travel in peak time, so it must have been OK price wise).

Good luck and I hope you get a lovely holiday.

Also, we almost never book before a month or two in advance, sometimes much shorter notice than that (record is 6 days) and we've never failed to find something affordable in the Med or Canaries, but we are always outside school holidays but do sometimes overlap a tiny bit.

Flights and Airbnb? We have never paid more than £100 a night (and often considerably less) for any Airbnb property. How about Croatia or Portugal is still cheaper than the U.K. - and especially if you avoid the Algarve.

I booked a cheap package deal through loveholidays 2 years ago now, it was a lot cheaper than what the other guests paid for their holidays too.

I'm in a similar predicament where due to money issues we can't book ours until the end of June for 19th august departure. I'm panicking there'll be nothing left!!

We're going for a villa this year as we will have a 6 week old baby. Normally we do AI packages in various parts of Europe

Thanks for the ideas. We had thought about Croatia so I'll add Portugal to the possibles list.

The problem is we can't commit to a holiday at all until mid July. We have something happening that may happen in August in which case we won't be going anywhere (sorry to be so elusive but it's quite outing - think like planned major surgery but not that). We'll find out one way or the other mid July ish.

It's a good thing so the holiday is a plan B in case it doesn't happen. I don't want to get everyone all excited about a holiday as a plan B though only to find nothings left when I'm in a position to make a decision.

Annoyingly FIL lives in Costa del Sol so my original plan B was to go to his house (he's in UK for 3 months June-Sept) but he told us last week that he's let his house on a long let for the whole summer so he's cancelled us! Hence I'm a bit all at sea!

You don't have to book a package for a relaxing beach holiday, you can book it all separately yourself using sites like travel republic, booking.com or expedia.

It's exactly the same hotels and apartments as what the tour operators use in a lot of cases and often a lot more flexibility as you have a bigger choice of accomodation and durations.

Sometimes doing it separately is cheaper and sometimes a package is cheaper. I'm sure you'll find something at that time of year, especially if your DS doesn't go back to school until a few days into September - I think my nephews sometimes don't go back until as late as the 9th September, so perfect for a week in late August-early September.

You will definitely get somewhere in Turkey and when you rationally consider the risks, the main resorts on the Med are far away from where terrorist attrocities have happened and are likely to be no less safe than Paris, London, Germany etc.

www.skyscanner.net/news/tips/safe-travel-in-turkey-2016/