Familia Wanderers

Whether you’re short on cash and you’re relying on a real holiday bargain, you’re trying to squeeze in your fifth break of the year before Christmas, or you just love a good deal, we all have our reasons for watching the pennies. Happily for those of us who don’t have access to a bottomless spending pit, there are plenty of cheap holidays from Ireland available – it’s just a matter of knowing where to look.

Where package holidays are concerned, late deals are still one of the favoured methods of going away. This involves choosing a destination, or several as the case may be, and keeping an eye on the list of package holidays as the clock ticks down to the departure date. Then when the price has (hopefully) dropped far enough, you book your preferred holiday – which can be as little as one week before the departure date. This is a popular method but it’s not without its risks. The idea is that tour operators buy up flight seats and hotel rooms in bulk, package them together and sell them with a few added extras, such as coach transfers and the services of a local holiday rep. Of course any packages not sold are a loss to the company – so they often lower their prices near the departure date to entice those last few customers in.

It can work extremely well, particularly if you’re open-minded about where you choose to go and where you stay. However you can easily lose out if your chosen hotel is snapped up by another eagle-eyed holidaymaker, and similarly, the price might not drop as much as you would hope.

If you like to play it safe, or if you’re looking for family holiday deals, a better bargain-hunting method would be to book well in advance. Keep your eyes peeled for the launch of a new brochure or a brand new season and be prepared to book as soon as the new holiday brochures hit the shop shelves. You’ll often see early bird deals advertised with first-come-first-served special offers, plus you’ll get extra time to pay off the cost of the holiday and save some spending money too.

It’s never too soon to get excited about your Malia holiday 2013.

So what if Christmas hasn’t even been and gone yet? Who cares! The man in the red suit isn’t gonna hold it against you. In fact, it’s a sure bet that he’ll give your early bird savings a ‘ho ho ho’ of approval.

Also, don’t forget, you can write your Christmas list with Malia clubbing on your mind. Another low cost tactic – get your nearest and dearest to stick a few holiday essentials into your Crimbo stocking.

That’s OK, thank us for the tip later, we’re full of this kind of stuff. It’s our gift to you, like that time Katy Perry bought Brand a trip into outer space. But a little less extravagant, obviously.

Maybe a lot less extravagant.

Maybe nothing like it at all, come to think of it.

Your suitcase contents are going to differ somewhat depending on whether you’re a female or male creature. Generally, women – and preened pretty boys – pack an entire two-weeker suitcase full of seasonal looks.

Lads and lasses planning to get up to a load of messy mischief usually pack less appropriate attire, including ridiculous hats and fancy dress, as well as inflatables and protection.

Sun protection. For all that fun they’ll be having in the scorching Crete heats. Why, what were you thinking of?

As well as a week’s worth of clothes, a few hats, inflatables, fancy dress, neon and sun cream, what else do you need? Well, there is all of that health and legal malarkey to consider.

Your passport needs to have at least six months remaining on it, from the date of your return. You’ll need your EHIC stuff (Googlerama), health insurance, travel documents and currency.

Savvy travellers also leave their journey deets, contact address and phone number with someone they trust. Mums qualify for this duty.

Get on it! The Malia holiday 2013 countdown starts now!