Best-value winter sun destinations for UK travellers this year - report

Best-value winter sun destinations for UK travellers this year - report A Post Office Travel report, which analysised 24 popular destinations, has crowned the top value-for-money destinations for British holidaymakers looking for a winter getaway Travelling can be expensive but if you do your research before you book you can save a fair amount of money on your trip. A report by Post Office Travel Money has revealed the top value-for-money destinations for British holidaymakers looking for a winter getaway. With weather forecasting models suggesting daytime temperatures could plunge below 10C across much of the UK next month now is the perfect time to plan that winter sun holiday. Cape Town in South Africa, Mombasa in Kenya and Tokyo in Japan have been crowned the most affordable, according to the report. Cape Town offers the lowest prices on goods commonly purchased by tourists, with the Japanese capital and the Kenyan coastal city following closely behind. The report is based off a study of 24 popular holiday spots for Post Office Travel Money. The Winter Sun Holiday Costs Barometer is calculated using prices for everyday items such as an evening meal, drinks, insect repellent and sun cream. It does not factor in the cost of flights or accommodation. For the first time, the research included both short and long-haul destinations, covering only locations reachable without transiting through a Middle Eastern airport. Cape Town has topped the chart as the best-value winter sun destination on numerous occasions, with prices dropping by 9.7% since March this year, Post Office Travel Money confirmed. A three-course dinner for two, including a bottle of house wine, came to just £39.26 in Cape Town, compared with a hefty £119.26 in Scarborough, Tobago, which ranked as the priciest destination surveyed. In Mombasa, the same meal cost £42.78, while Tokyo came in at £48.50. Portugal's Algarve, Spain's Costa del Sol and Tenerife in the Canary Islands proved the most affordable among the eight European resorts assessed. Of the overall ten cheapest destinations, four were located in Asia – namely Penang in Malaysia, Phuket in Thailand, Colombo in Sri Lanka and Tokyo. Laura Plunkett, head of Post Office Travel Money, said: "Our research again picked up wide variations in the cost of tourist staples, particularly in areas like the Caribbean and in Europe. "This means holidaymakers could save themselves money and cut the cost of their winter sun holiday by doing some basic holiday pricing research before booking."