Revealed: the cheapest and most expensive weeks to go on summer holiday – and the countries with the most affordable package deals

If Brits have the patience to wait, they could save hundreds of pounds on their holidays this summer, whether they're looking for a getaway in the sun or a break in a British cottage. Which? has revealed.

The consumer watchdog notes that the most expensive weeks for taking a package holiday are the periods from July 27 to August 3 and August 3 to August 10. These are the first two weeks after most English schools have split up.

The cheapest week during the summer holidays for a package holiday is the last, when most children are still free: August 24 to 31.

Which? also looked at changes in the cost of booking a cottage in different parts of the UK, which they found varied depending on region. However, it has never been the cheapest to book during the first week of the English and Welsh school holidays.

WHEN AND WHERE ARE THE CHEAPEST HOLIDAY SUMMER PACKAGES

Digging deeper into the package holiday data, the consumer group found that it is £123 cheaper per person to book a package holiday during the last week of the summer holidays compared to the first week, and on average £129 cheaper than the second.

The last two weeks of the summer holidays were cheaper for all major holiday destinations. Which? looked at: Spain, Portugal, Greece, Cyprus, Italy, Turkey, Bulgaria, Malta and Morocco.

On average, the cheapest package holidays were to Morocco, with a week's all-inclusive trip costing an average of £962 per person.

The second cheapest were in Malta (£1,080 per person), while Bulgaria was the third most affordable (£1,087 per person).

The cheapest package holidays on average were in Morocco (above), with a week's all-inclusive trip costing an average of £962 per person

In this list, Portugal was the most expensive country, with a seven-night all-inclusive package setting consumers back £1,344.

In second place is Greece, although considerably cheaper at £1,258, closely followed by neighboring Cyprus, the third most expensive package holiday destination at £1,253.

Which? notes that these figures were influenced by the types of holidays available in each location. Countries with a higher concentration of luxury hotels will logically have higher average costs for package holidays – but that doesn't rule out the possibility that bargains are available in that destination as consumers look for a less decadent hotel.

To conduct the survey in January 2024. Which? collected data on 5,681 TUI and 2,223 Jet2 all-inclusive seven-day holidays, for the period between July 13, 2024 and August 31, 2024. Prices were per person based on two people sharing.

WHEN ARE THE CHEAPEST SUMMER HOLIDAY STAYS?

Raid in the Highlands: Of all the holiday homes surveyed, from mid-July to early September, the most expensive cottages were in Scotland. Pictured Buachaille Etive Mor mountain in Glen Etive in the Scottish Highlands

Which? It also looked at where and when it was cheapest to spend summer holidays in a holiday home in Britain.

Once again, the first week of the English school holidays turned out to be the most expensive time for an outing.

Which weeks are the least expensive depends on whether Britons go on holiday to England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland.

In England, cottages were most expensive in the first week of the school holidays, the week starting July 27, with the price of a week's cottage averaging £1,358. Wait a week before you leave on August 3, and the fare will be the cheapest: £1,267, a saving of £91.

Prices drop significantly when English schools start again – the average price for the week starting August 31 is £988. That's £370 cheaper than leaving at the start of the school holidays.

Price fluctuations at holiday homes in Wales were slightly less pronounced during the holiday period. The most expensive time to book is the week starting August 3, when a week's stay will cost holidaymakers an average of £1,304.

Leaving on August 24th they will shave £85 off that. However, as in England, the big saving only comes when school starts again: it averages £980 for a week of accommodation starting on August 31, £324 less than the peak period.

Scottish schools open earlier than English ones, from July 1 to August 12. If Brits want a holiday home in Scotland, the most expensive week of the period surveyed is £1,328, while the least expensive – as in England and Wales – is the week starting August 31, when a cottage stay can be had for £1,129 per week arrested. .

Northern Ireland had the cheapest summer holiday cottages in the whole of Great Britain in 2024. Pictured: Families enjoying the Dark Hedges in Ballymoney, Northern Ireland

Of all the holiday homes surveyed, from mid-July to early September, the most expensive cottages were in Scotland.

The least expensive cottages were in Northern Ireland, with homes costing an average of £912 per week during the English summer holidays, compared to £1,279 on average for the same period in Scotland.

In Northern Ireland, school holidays are not standardized, but set by individual schools. Cottages were most expensive in the week starting August 3 – an average of £1,006 per week (this is on average £322 cheaper than renting in the same week in Scotland).

If Brits can hold out until August 31, the price for a cottage stay in Northern Ireland will drop to £736 – the cheapest available in the whole of Britain.

To collect the data: in January 2024 Which? collected 303,914 prizes for week-long stays in British cottages of all sizes during summer 2024, from Cottages.com and Holidaycottages.co.uk.