00:00 It's that time of year when many of us start planning for some summer sunshine,
00:05 and January marks the peak period for holiday bookings in the UK. Package holiday companies
00:11 and airlines are currently offering sales with the hope of securing our business for 2024,
00:17 with many bargains currently on offer. So there are lots of things you can do, whether it's
00:22 researching the holiday, so if you have a destination in mind, do a lot of research
00:26 early to find the best deals. Also think about other destinations, so if you usually go to one
00:33 destination, maybe look further afield at places like North Macedonia or the Balkans, Albania,
00:39 you know, these are places that you could find yourself a really good value for money holiday
00:44 because they're not quite so popular with tourists at the moment, so they're good value for money.
00:49 There are many other ways you can save money on your holiday, including finding cheap flights
00:53 with price comparison search engines. Don't rush to book the first cheap flight you see,
00:58 compare prices with multiple airlines and search engines for the best value. Use search engines
01:03 like Skyscanner, Momondo and Google Flights, which have features to find deals and indicate cost
01:09 savings for flying on different days. Check the airline's flight terms and conditions carefully
01:14 to avoid exceeding hand baggage limits and incurring additional fees. Invest in luggage
01:20 scales to check you're within restrictions and avoid over packing or wearing the contents of
01:24 your suitcase. Consider alternatives to flying perhaps, maybe traveling by coach or train for
01:31 shorter journeys and check for offers on the Channel Tunnel and ferry crossings, especially
01:36 for trips to France or Belgium. Interrail across Europe making travel part of the adventure is also
01:42 suggested, as well as getting affordable travel insurance. All-inclusive breaks also offer an
01:48 opportunity to lock in your holiday costs early. So that's another way that holidaymakers can do
01:53 that. But we think one of the easiest ways to find savings is by booking all those extras,
01:59 all those things that you might leave to the last minute and 7% of us do. If you book those early,
02:04 you can actually find much better savings and it can give you peace of mind. Peace of mind by
02:08 getting to book an airport hotel, which comes with parking and might actually be a better deal
02:14 in terms of overall cost. And it means you can get to the airport early, start your holiday early,
02:19 not get up quite so early in the morning with maybe your children in tow if you've got an early
02:24 flight. That's a good option as well. And this week some pertinent holiday advice has come from
02:28 money-saving expert Martin Lewis. In his latest weekly newsletter, Martin warned households to
02:34 take out travel insurance as soon as they book a holiday. He spoke about the many cases where
02:39 people have booked holidays and then succumb to a serious illness. Holidays then have to be cancelled
02:45 while the person gets treatment, but the airline or hotel won't refund them. Had the person took
02:50 out insurance, they would have received a full refund. Well, according to Travel Weekly, around
02:56 5.2 million holidays are booked by people in January. And the top destination for this year,
03:02 well, it's the same as last year - Spain.
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