Tips for Planning Your Next Trip Here with TUI

Some people plan their holidays many months in advance, others book spontaneously at the last minute.

18:29 24 February 2023

Some people plan their holidays many months in advance, others book spontaneously at the last minute. But when do you get the best prices and what does day of the week and time of day have to do with it 

CHEAPEST TIME TO BOOK A HOLIDAY

The question of when to book a holiday cannot be answered in general. It depends on many factors such as the type of trip and the destination. Just one information in advance: Last minute is not always the best choice.

BOOK A FAMILY HOLIDAY

Family holidays are tied to school holidays, with the exception of very young children. For these weeks, a large number of people are looking for available holiday destinations. It is definitely not advisable to wait for last-minute offers here, as the first to be booked are accommodation suitable for families with children and popular facilities such as water parks with large slides. So when is the best time to book this holiday? Simply: as soon as possible, because then you will benefit twice.

Major tour operators usually offer discounts for early booking around six months before departure. This provides planning certainty not only for you but also for travel agencies. They like to know ahead of time that they are selling their products (ie tours) and therefore tempt you with special offers. So if you want to travel with your family during the summer holidays, you should book for late autumn or winter. The choice of beautiful accommodation is now the widest.

The same deadline applies to other dates. For example, if you're planning a family holiday to the Canary Islands over the Christmas holidays for sun and warmth, you should book in the summer. Don't forget that the period over Christmas and New Year is particularly expensive, as many people without children travel even then. They take advantage of the many holidays around this time to escape the gray of winter and sometimes the hustle and bustle of Christmas at home.

More tips for families:

• Look for departure airports in neighboring states where there are no school holidays;
• Look for airports close to the border in neighboring states where there are no school holidays;
• Choose a length of stay of 9 or 10 days instead of the usual 7 or 14 days.

Look out for other savings options, such as family rooms with four beds instead of two double rooms or apartments with a kitchenette, which are often the first to be fully booked.

TIME AND DAY OF THE WEEK

When you ask when is the best time to book a holiday, you will often come across information about the day of the week and the time of day. However, this does not apply so much to stay packages, where operators set prices months in advance anyway, but to hotels, flights and other means of transport.

If you are planning a short trip to the metropolis by plane, you will fly cheaper on Tuesdays and Thursdays than on other days of the week. Many business travelers are away on Monday and Friday, and most vacationers return on Sunday. In cities with many business travelers, you can find good hotel deals at the weekend, while short trips to tourist destinations in the mountains or by the sea are more expensive at the weekend than during the week.

The question of when to book a holiday is also a question of your options. If you can book a holiday at your leisure during the day on a weekday, you should take advantage of it. On the Internet, some vacations are more expensive in the evenings and at weekends, because then many more people have time to surf the Internet and dream about their next vacation destination.

SUMMARY

Now you have a good idea of when you should book your vacation. Here's an overview of the highlights:

• The Early Booking Discount combines generous discounts with great selection and is ideal for holiday-bound families and people with a specific destination in mind.
• Last minute is the right thing for anyone who just wants to spontaneously go out in the sun or into nature and pay attention above all to the price.
• Keep track of school holidays in other countries and book either very early or on other dates.
• Avoid big events or choose accommodation further afield and book as soon as possible.

One final tip:

 Are you thinking about very low prices for an exotic destination while browsing? It might not be because of the early booking discount, but because it's the rainy season here. In that case, you have to decide for yourself whether you want to put up with rain showers and gray skies for a low price.