Black Friday is the cheapest time to book a holiday, say Which?

15 December, 2024

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As Black Friday travel offers spam shoppers’ inboxes, the pressure to book a holiday is on – but are the savings genuine?

According to Which?, 73 per cent of the savings on flights and holidays advertised during last year’s sales were verified as top offers.

Which? found that seven in 10 deals were cheapest on Black Friday and rose in price after the event.

The consumer champion tracked the prices of 140 flights and holidays on Black Friday 2023, two weeks later on 15 December, and again on 4 January 2024 to see if the discounts held up.

Researchers price-checked flights from airlines British Airways, easyJet, Jet2, Ryanair, Tui, Virgin Atlantic and Wizz Air.

Black Friday was the best time to book a British Airways flight to Oslo – half price compared to booking in January – with Ryanair flights to Zagreb over Valentine’s Day £140 cheaper on the day.

Dynamic pricing often means that travel providers increase and decrease costs depending on demand.

Holiday providers Booking.com, British Airways holidays, easyJet holidays, Jet2holidays, Loveholidays, and Tui Holidays were also compared by Which?.

It’s good news for those hoping to bag a bargain trip with Tui – 100 per cent of the holiday deals it checked were cheaper on Black Friday compared to two weeks later.

Investigators found a discount of almost £300 on a Tui holiday to Tenerife – £884pp during the event and £1,023pp in December – and over £200 off on an all-inclusive Jet2 break to Fuerteventura.

The results were down from 2022, when Which? found that nine in 10 deals were cheapest on Black Friday and come in contrast to wider shopping offers, which revealed nine in ten deals were duds across home and tech products.

Rory Boland, editor of Which? Travel, said: “While last year’s data suggests holidaymakers had a fair chance of making a saving on Black Friday, don’t feel pressured to book in the sale this year. When it comes to travel it can be difficult to tell a deal from a dud – flight prices can fluctuate for all manner of reasons, as can holiday costs, and there’s no guarantee the savings we spotted last year will be repeated.

“What we do know from tracking thousands of holiday prices is that booking as far ahead as possible will generally beat booking last minute.

“Scammers are out in force this time of year, so if a deal looks too good to be true, think twice. Be particularly wary of deals advertised on social media, offers from unfamiliar companies, and accommodation listings urging payment by bank transfer.”

For more travel news and advice, listen to Simon Calder’s podcast

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