As the cost-of-living crisis continues to bite, many holidaymakers are looking for ways to save money on their next trip – and one expert has a solution
If you’re looking to save money on your summer holiday, swapping planes for ferries could be the answer.
The travel company Omio has argued that choosing ‘slow travel’ options like ferries and being as flexible as you can be can be a great way to cut costs. The concept is a simple one – use boats, trains, cars, or even walk instead of flying. Not only is avoiding air travel almost certainly better for the environment, taking the time to soak up the land you’re travelling across can improve the experience.
A spokesperson for the brand argued that taking the trip to a holiday destination at a slower pace can help tourists save a considerable amount of money. They said: “With more people already opting for rail travel, road trips, or walking holidays, it’s no surprise that searches for slow travel are on the rise. With summer just around the corner, what better time to start mapping a slow travel route for this summer?
“With the cost of living crisis, it’s important for travelling and holidays not to break the bank. That’s why Omio, an online travel comparison and booking website, has analysed a slow travel route using ferries across Europe this summer and compared it to flight prices to reveal a cheaper alternative.”
Showing how much tourists can save on flight costs, Omio created a lavish tour around France and Spain, taking in some of the most popular destinations in each country, including Calais, Barcelona, and Ibiza.
Whilst one variant of this trip took tourists to each location via flights, the other used a mix of ferries, trains, and coaches to get to each destination. Of course, the ‘slow travel’ option took a lot longer, meaning holidaymakers had less time to enjoy each city. But, dodging flights slashed the trip’s cost by nearly £150, with travellers shelling out £620 on getting around during their break.
Avoiding flying also means visiting more, smaller destinations on the way which would otherwise be skipped if travelling from airport to airport. The online travel firm lets customers create trips on its website and its app. It is intriguing to see how trips with different forms of transport can vary in price on the platform depending on how long and far the journey.
Chelsea Dickenson, who offers advice online as the Cheap Holiday Expert, recently argued that avoiding automatically going for the cheaper option in terms of initial flights can end up saving you money down the line. “Transport is a one off cost. We get obsessed by these cheap flights. You could end up paying £50 more on your flight, but you could be booking at a period when the accommodation is £1,000 cheaper. So sometimes it can be better to look at accommodation first. Take five minutes to check your next holiday and you could end up saving hundreds if not thousands of pounds,” Chelsea advises.
When it comes to choosing between flights and slower means of transport, the cost of a ferry or train can appear significantly greater than a flight, until the fact you can sometimes sleep on the former and that they’re often far more pleasant is taken into account.
Chelsea also underlined how important it is to be flexible – if you can – when it comes to choosing when and where you travel. “The most important thing to find a cheap holiday is to have a level of flexibility. That doesn’t mean just the day, that could be the duration. We tend to think about holidays in like seven, 10 days and 14 day blocks. By searching by 8 or 9 days you can find cheaper holidays that way,” she said.
When searching for places to stay, Chelsea advises keeping it as broad as possible. “Put in ‘Continent’. I have found myself absolutely beautiful five star hotels for under £100 a night by doing this,” she said.
Check out more of Daily Mirror’s latest travel stories by signing up to our free weekly newsletter.
