Christmas may be just a couple of days away…but by the end of the week, for many Brits, thoughts will turn to next year’s holiday – with tour operators serving up their best package deals on travel for 2026.
If you’re in the market for a flights and accommodation package next summer, new research by Which? has revealed the destinations where your money will stretch that bit further.
The consumer champion price-checked more than 5,000 packages to find the top ten cheapest resorts across 13 countries in Europe and beyond.
Which? looked at the average price per person for a seven-night, peak season package deal, based on travel with two of the country’s most popular tour operators, Jet2holidays and easyJet Holidays.
Spain’s Costa Blanca, a favourite with Brits since the dawn of package holidays back in the 1970s, was a clear winner on cost, the research found.
The average package holiday getaway for a week-long stay was found to cost £864 on the Spanish coastline, with popular destinations including Benidorm, Javea and Denia.
Indeed, Benidorm had the lowest price deals researchers could find anywhere, with a week’s self-catering at the two-star Playamar apartments from £535 per person in the height of the summer season.
Meanwhile, an all-inclusive stay at the four-star Flamingo Beach Resort came in at £886, with easyJet Holidays.
The cheapest Spanish Costa – and the cheapest package holiday destination next year according to new Which? research – is the Costa Blanca, where average holiday prices for flights and accommodation in peak season come in at £864pp (Pictured Javea on the Costa Blanca)
Second place might be a surprise to some…Tuscany, in Italy.
Known for its rolling landscapes, delicious food and beautiful hilltop towns, the region had an average summer holiday price of £929.
A favourite with the middle classes, Tuscany is more competitive on price than many other Italian destinations, with the average price for a holiday in Sardinia next year, for example, over £500 more at £1,508 per person.
Third place, and the only other destination to be, on average, under £1,000 for a week’s stay – and not in Europe – was Morocco’s Agadir coast, which came in at £946.
The North African country’s beach destinations are known for reasonably priced food and drink, and the region is a particular hit with surfers thanks to the Atlantic’s lively waves.
Fourth was another long-time favourite with British tourists: the sparkling Dalaman region of Turkey, where the average price per person for a week’s holiday with flights and accommodation included was £1,048.
Spain dominated the top 10 list though, with six of the destinations in either the Costas or the Canary Islands – but no sign of the Balearics.
Three of the most popular Canaries – Tenerife (£1,073), Fuerteventura (£1,119) and Gran Canaria (£1,121) – placed 5th, 6th and 7th respectively, while the Costa Brava (£1,125) and the Costa Dorada (£1,133) came in at 8th and 9th place.
A surprise in second? Of the 13 countries Which? looked at, across Europe and beyond, Italy’s Tuscany was found to be the next cheapest place after the Costa Blanca for a peak season package
Of the 5,393 holidays checked, Tenerife’s cheapest deal was found in the black-sand beach resort of Puerto de la Cruz, which had an average price of £776pp – although four-star and above hotels tended to be closer to £1,000 for a hotel that’s rated four stars or above.
Only one Greek destination made the cut, the island of Zante took the 10th spot with an average holiday price of £1,142.
Holiday prices in destinations and resorts in 13 countries – Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, France, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Malta, Montenegro, Morocco, Portugal, Spain and Turkey – were examined in the research.
Last week, the consumer champion delved into how travel price comparison sites fared.
The Which? study considered several factors including site functionality, the range of booking options, cheap rates and transparency and accuracy to formulate a total overall score.
For flights specifically, Skyscanner came out top with 81 per cent, rating five out of five for both site functionality and transparency and accuracy.
The research declared it as the ‘easiest to use’ out of all the sites tested. Skyscanner also displays ratings for the booking sites it lists to help customers pick the best.
Which? did note the website doesn’t show as many options as Google Flights, which came second with 79 per cent, but noted ‘the fares were almost as cheap’.
And in third place for the lowest average package holiday price was a non-European destination – Morocco’s Agadir coastline (pictured) – which came in at £946 for a week
Overall, Skyscanner was described as ‘a really user-friendly site that will help you easily find the best flight for you’.
However, not all of the comparison sites came out so strong, and Jetcost ranked the worst – in sixth place – for flights, scoring just 49 per cent.
Jetcost produced the cheapest fares most frequently for 30 different journeys but they were often provided by booking sites Which? was not familiar with.
What’s more, some of the sites had negative reviews from users who claimed they had to pay more for the ticket than what was originally advertised through Jetcost.
Although it scored four out of five for cheap rates, it was consistently low on site functionality, booking options and transparency and accuracy.
Which?’s final verdict on Jetcost reads, ‘We wouldn’t use some sites it links to, and we don’t recommend you do either.’
A spokesperson for Jetcost told Which?: ‘Our priority is to make travel comparisons as clear and trustworthy as possible.’
They added that it has a ‘strong ongoing commitment to setting a high bar for clarity, usability, and fairness in travel comparison’.
Zante, otherwise known as Zakynthos, was the only Greek island to make a dent in the top 10 cheapest package holiday destinations, with a week-long break costing £1,142
Meanwhile, in the hotel comparison site rankings Cozycozy came last, in sixth place.
It scored 54 per cent and ranked particularly low for site functionality and booking options.
Though it did score three stars for cheap rates and four for transparency and accuracy.
Cozycozy also didn’t offer the Which? researchers the option to book directly with the hotels very often, and the consumer champion’s verdict overall was ‘don’t bother’.
The Daily Mail approached CozyCozy for comment.
Kayak placed fifth for both flights and hotels, scoring 73 per cent for its plane journey comparisons and 55 per cent for its accommodation options.
A spokesperson for Kayak told the Daily Mail: ‘We welcome independent research that helps travellers make informed choices. However, based on the methodology published on the Which? website, this user testing appears to rely on feedback from just five participants.
‘A sample size of five is far too limited to draw meaningful conclusions about how millions of travellers use and benefit from travel search tools today. Robust, representative research is essential when making claims of this scale.
Three of the most popular Canaries – Tenerife (£1,073) (pictured), Fuerteventura (£1,119) and Gran Canaria (£1,121) – placed 5th, 6th and 7th respectively
‘Our priority is to arm travellers with accurate and comprehensive travel information along with useful tools to help them make the travel decisions that are right for them – whether that’s via a provider, airline, or hotel directly. We continue to invest in our user experience, and innovation across all platforms.’
Google Hotels ranked first for the hotel comparisons, scoring 79 per cent, and was praised by Which? for being ‘excellent on price’.
But it did note that the price advertised wasn’t always the same as when the testers went to book.
Google Hotels was followed by Skyscanner in second place with 65 per cent.
Rory Boland, editor of Which? Travel, said: ‘Some of these comparison sites will make it harder, not easier to find the cheapest price for a hotel or flight, so it’s worth thinking carefully about which one you use to make sure you really are getting a bargain.
‘The best comparison sites let you book your flights and hotels directly. We always recommend holidaymakers do this as it offers greater protection should something go wrong, and is often better value too.’