Post Office Travel reveals lowest long-haul in-resort prices

The impact of sterling’s slide in value has extended beyond Europe into long-haul holiday destinations, according to the 12^th annual Post Office Travel Money Long Haul Holiday Report.

Although sterling has held up relatively well in recent weeks, it is currently weaker against all the long haul currencies used in the 30 featured destinations featured in the report, produced in partnership with Travelbag.

This year, UK visitors can expect to pay more than last year in three-quarters of the resorts and cities surveyed.  However, falls in local prices in half of the destinations will cushion the impact.

Tokyo has overtaken Cape Town to regain its position as the best-value destination in the latest list.

Prices are down significantly in both Antigua and Dubai with smaller falls in Mauritius, St Lucia, Tobago, Vietnam and the Seychelles – the latter remaining the most expensive destination

Prices are up by over 20% in Thailand and in New York

For the research, Post Office Money assessed in-resort prices in shops, bars and restaurants.

The list includes the price of coffee, lager, can of Coke, glass of wine and cocktail in a bar; a three-course evening meal for two adults, including house wine, in a restaurant and a shopping basket of chocolate, mineral water, sun cream and insect repellent

The report names seven resorts where costs for UK visitors are lower than a year ago.

Antigua tops this list and enters the 10 best value destinations in eighth place as a result. It’s one of three Caribbean islands to register a fall in costs of tourists’ staples.

Prices have fallen 28% to £82, in Antigua’s capital St John. Saint Lucia, where tourist staple prices are £110 in Rodney Bay, has risen eight places to 11^th in the table after a 2.6%. Tobago (Scarborough, £122), moves up to 20^th place with a 3.4% fall.

Despite prices dropping 2.3%, Seychelles remains the most expensive destination surveyed for this year’s report, at £188.

Travelbag managing director Lesley Rollo said: "The average price of a holiday to the destinations featured in this report has risen by around 7% in the last year, as factors like rising oil prices and over-demand take effect.

"However, despite those rising prices and sterling’s slide, consumers still want to book – they’re just increasingly savvy in offsetting the cost of the holiday itself with what they’ll pay once they’re there and will prioritise destinations where they’ll know they’ll get good value on the ground."

Holiday prices to Japan have risen by 26%, yet demand has increased by more than a third. By contrast, bookings for Dubai, where resort costs remain relatively high, have softened considerably even though package prices have risen by a modest 6%.

Top 15 cheapest long-haul in-resort prices
(figure in bracket shows last year’s position)

1. (2) Tokyo (Japan): £60.11

2. (1) Cape Town (South Africa): £60.58

3. (3) Bali (Indonesia): £72.08

4. (5) Hoi An (Vietnam): £74.70

5. (4) Mombassa (Kenya): £74.84

6. (-) Columbo (Sri Lanka): £80.17

7. (6) Cancun (Mexico): £81.70

8. (28) St John (Antigua): £82.48

9. (7) Orlando (USA): £86.90

10. (8) Penang (Malaysia): £89.19

11. (19) Rodney Bay (St Lucia): £110.45

12. (18) Grand Baie (Mauritius): £111.04

13. (12) Rio de Janeiro (Brazil): £111.10

14. (14) Vancouver (Canada): £115.06

15. (16) Montego Bay (Jamaica): £115.82

Top six most expensive destinations for in-resort prices

1. Mahe (Seychelles): £188.06

2. St James (Barbados): £179.13

3. City Centre (Abu Dhabi): £175.18

4. Jumeirah (Dubai): £149.71

5. Santiago (Chile): £136.47

6. New York (USA): £135.99

Image by ScouserUK from Pixabay