What are your best tips for saving money on family holidays? Share to win a £300 Love2Shop voucher, courtesy of Lloyds Bank. NOW CLOSED

[AnnMumsnet]

We all know that taking the family away can come with a hefty price tag, but in the cold, dark months everyone could do with having a bit of sunshine to look forward to later in the year. Lloyds Bank would like you to share advice on finding a great family getaway that doesn't break the bank.

Here’s what they said: “Holidays with your family can create memories that last a lifetime, however sometimes your finances can overshadow the time away. Whether it’s early, meticulous planning or a spontaneous last minute break, we would love to hear Mumsnetter’s tips for getting the most value from a family holiday" – Lloyds Bank

We know Mumsnetters are a savvy bunch, so what tips do you have for keeping the cost of your holiday down?

Do you venture off the beaten track when it comes to choosing a destination? Would you plan your own holiday package to find the best individual deals and eliminate unnecessary extras? Maybe you go away with other families to share the cost - or go for self-catering options to control your budget?

Whatever your tips, Lloyds Bank would like to hear them for saving when it comes to booking your family holidays: whether at home or abroad.

Everyone who posts on this thread will be entered into a prize draw and one MNer will win a £300 Love2Shop voucher.

Thanks,

MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs apply

I always book well in advance and shop around.
Don't rely just on the internet, make phone calls and go into high street travel agents to see who can get you the best deal.
Have a 'holiday' email address. After last year's holiday hunt I got so many emails from different agents it was making my inbox a nightmare to keep clear.

Don't buy unnecessary extras. So many people think they're getting a deal because they bought the latest light suitcare, when really they forked out for no reason.

If you're looking a package online:
Get a price then clear your cookies, turn your modem off at the switch, leave it off for a while then turn it on. Go get the quote again. Some sites track your activity and put the prices up so doing all this loses their tracking.
Don't pay for transfers - very often you can get a taxi for cheaper and getting to the hotel sooner (unless it is an hour transfer).

Plan ahead and shop around. Don't get trips direct from the tour company - local tours can be cheaper and more flexible.

Go it alone - plan the whole thing yourself - have the adventure and save by not paying someone to do the work.

Book an apartment so you can cook and cut down on money from not eating out.

Get a travelcard and take public transport instead of taxis.

Don't think about people at home and getting gifts for everyone. Tell them you lost your luggage. Teeheehee

Once you've shopped around for the best deals on flights and accomodation, see if you can book through a cashback site. Eurocamp are on Quidco and the cashback that I'll get for going through them will pay for a meal or day out while we're away.

Go self catering if you can. Taking a picnic on a day out makes a huge difference to your wallet, and means you don't get so stressed dealing with fussy eaters.

If you are flying, work out the actual difference in cost between the so-called ‘budget’ airlines and the normal ones - by the time you have added up the extra fees for hold luggage, in-flight meals, booking fees, transfer costs from an overseas airport that may not be near to where you are staying (budget airlines don’t always use the closest airport) etc it may actually work out cheaper to go with a non-budget ones where you will also get free kids activity packs and in-flight entertainment to keep the children entertained.

Be savvy with flight prices. We discovered when booking flights to the U.S. that certain websites appear to go up in price the more you keep checking them

Agree that the budget airlines aren't always the best deal when you factor in the cost of booking seats (can be up to £100 per person one way!) and taxes etc

When we go on holiday here in the UK it's about planning around meals to save money - eating out is soooo expensive!

For our upcoming skiing holiday, we've booked bed and breakfast, and intend to make the most of the buffet and fill up so we won't need lunch.

We've booked ski passes, lessons and equipment hire online in advance to save money.

Pre-ordering holiday currency is almost always cheaper than buying it over the counter as well.

Instead of using the café during the day, we'll take bottles of drink and snacks to keep us going if we need a break.

We'll make sure we take plenty of pain medication, support bandages and deep heat from the UK as it'll be cheaper than tracking down an open pharmacy and buying it at the resort!

And the obvious one... travel insurance! Shop around using comparison sites but make sure you have the right policy for your trip. Hospital stays, treatment, medication and repatriation are NOT cheap.

Always take things like oil, salt, pepper, tomato ketchup, tea bags etc with you to a uk self catering place. Saves having to buy everything again and only takes up a small space in the car.

House swap!

Always go self catering - I prefer that anyway and would rather eat out on night when we don't fancy cooking. Also prefer holiday cottages to hotels so you aren't restricted to just a room with a bed.

Be organised and book any days out in advance, you can save a lot of money by not purchasing tickets on the door.

Take your own snacks & drinks on days out. Have the DC help prepare them so that they feel excited for them less tempted by pricey shop options

Phone hotels direct to see if they have a better deal than a holiday web site.

We have an holiday abroad every two years and visit my family in Italy once a year. I keep a moneybox to save some money for ice cream and souvenirs. When I book accommodation I go for half-board and we have cheap lunches.

Always use a price comparison site on flight prices, such as Skyscanner!
Also look for coupons or discounts codes you can use online when booking. Depending who you bank with, some credit card providers can give great rewards too when booking holidays!
Make sure you spend a good few weeks looking around too, don't jump on the first holiday you see as you might end up spending a lot more!

Look online for discount vouchers, bring some snacks with you and do not spend what you don't have.

When we didn't have much money we always hired a static caravan. I have very fond memories of these holidays which we all enjoyed.

Book a cottage, often cheaper than a holiday park and you don't have noisy neighbours

If going abroad flying with Easyjet you can book dates at a cheaper rate & then change the date for school holiday dates which generally cost much more money. Always check there are plenty of seats on the dates you want before you do it.

We always found trips to stay at a gite in France enjoyable and educational (and gastronomic). Book the ferry around October for the best prices, and book the gite direct with Gites de France (there's not a lot of French to wade through. It's so much chepaer. And ask the locals (not necessarily the tourist office) for the best cheap restaurants around. There's always one that's really good value.

go off season where possible, and collect air miles

If you need to go in the summer holidays, then choose dates near the end of the holiday period, as they're normally cheaper than going at the start/in the middle! Or instead, do the big family holiday thing in October half-term - you can still find plenty of sunny locations, but prices are lower than in the height of summer.

Go camping or buy your own caravan for multiple cost saving fun holidays

When booking a holiday - Fares early in the morning and late at night are generally cheaper than those that are conveniently during normal waking hours. Brave dragging yourself out of bed at two in the morning to catch a 4 a.m. flight and you’ll probably pay less. This is especially true on ferries that run through the night. Also your child/ren is/are more likely to sleep during early/late travel!

Do a price comparison on Expedia between off-peak and peak flight times.