Cut the cost of your holiday...with a package deal

I've never been on a package holiday. A few times I have walked into a high street travel agent to browse their brochures or discuss my holiday ideas. I always walk out astounded at the prices they want to charge, knowing I can beat them by making the bookings myself through the internet. That way I can also tailor every aspect of my trip and have full control over my itinerary too.

It takes some time to do the research, of course, and the key for booking cheap travel on your own is to book as far ahead as possible. You have to book months in advance to beat other bargain hunters and scoop that £9 hotel room or £1 flight.

But package holidays work differently. Try booking an independent holiday yourself to a popular package resort during the peak season and you will find that flights and hotels are booked up (especially in the Canaries, Balearics, Spanish Costas, the Algarve and large Greek islands like Rhodes and Crete). That is because travel operators are sitting on most holiday options, booking charter aircraft and hotel rooms in bulk months in advance.

If these packages aren't shifted within 6 weeks of the holiday, prices start coming down dramatically when they realise seats and sunbeds are going empty. This is the only time when package deals really do become a 'deal'.

The trick is knowing when to take your chances. For instance, you should save a bundle by traveling between the May bank holidays. The May Day bank holiday weekend is the traditional start of the holiday season, and this year it is particularly early. UK schools won't be breaking up for half term until 25 May, giving bargain hunters three weeks of cheaper holidays.

Sea, sand, straw hat and sun shade!

However, the best month for securing a last minute cheap package to the Med will be in June. It is during this month that travel operators begin to maximise the number of flights and hotels for sale, although demand will still be only half of what they see during July and August.

Expect to pay no more than £200 per person for return flights and a week in a 3-star hotel. Weekend flights will be busy, so fly midweek. Avoid holidays that do not guarantee where you will be staying until you arrive, as you may be thrown into a fleapit with little chance of transferring to better accommodation.

Resorts in June will be buzzing, but not overly crowded. The sea will be warmer than in May. The sun won't be as intense as high summer, meaning the landscape should still be green. And June has the longest hours of daylight.

Don't think that waiting till summer will bring even better deals. During July and August, you won't find a cheap last minute beach holiday so look for a city break, if you must go away that time of year.

One drawback of booking late is that the most popular hotels will be full, leaving you to scrounge around the second-best options. Stay tuned for my next 'travel tips and tricks' entry when I'll tell you how researching your accommodation options should turn up an overlooked gem.