COLUMN: Banish the blues with a trip abroad

Early-bird booking isn’t always the number one way to bag a travel bargain; you can often get an amazing holiday deal at the last minute. Airlines assign many different prices to seats on their planes over the course of their availability, and legend has it that 21 days prior to departure, they start to look at the empty seats and begin their reductions… so make the most of the savings and snap up a deal exactly three weeks before you want to fly.

Secondly, book midweek. As well as booking late, there’s another trick to purchasing flights that will help you make even bigger savings. Airlines refresh and analyse their bookings mid-week and it’s often during this time that the biggest reductions will become available – so rather than waiting until the weekend to book your ticket to the sun, be ready to click ‘Buy’ on a Tuesday or Wednesday afternoon. That way you’ll wave goodbye to less cash before the holiday starts and have more of your budget to spend on making travel better while you are away.

Another important thing to consider when making your holiday booking is where to park your car safely while you are away, and if you have an early flight, where you will rest your head the night before. By booking an airport hotel, you have the opportunity to start your holiday even earlier, and the chance to make a healthy saving if you combine the hotel booking with airport parking too. Once booked it just leaves you to do the most important thing – enjoy yourselves.

For more visit:www.HolidayExtras.com.