TRAVELLERS looking for the best deals should go online rather than refer to tour operator brochures, according to research today from Holiday Which? magazine.
Holiday Which? investigators found a difference of as much as £468 on the price of a two-week Majorcan holiday for two adults and one child booked online rather than from a brochure.
The price of the holiday at the Sol Magalluf Park hotel around late July 2007 was more expensive booked through a brochure than online for all of the four main tour operators - Thomson, Airtours, First Choice and Thomas Cook, said the magazine.
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The £468 saving for booking online for the hotel was for Thomas Cook which had the most expensive brochure price for the hotel compared with its three main rival companies.
First Choice had the most expensive brochure price for the hotel, while Airtours offered the best value both via brochure and online.
Extras
Holiday Which? said there were "costly extras" on the advertised brochure price. These ranged from flight supplements, having extra leg room and sitting together on a flight, to under-occupancy supplements.
Holiday Which? editor Lorna Cowan said: "For people already looking through holiday brochures and thinking about their summer holiday, make sure you read the small print.
"Extra costs can make booking a package holiday an expensive option - we urge holidaymakers to check costs, compare prices and go online to the tour operators websites."
The magazine also warned about the danger of malaria to UK travellers, saying that up to 2,000 Britons could return with the disease and as many as 12 could die this year.
Ms Cowan said: "More and more people are jetting off on long-haul holidays to areas where malaria is rife - it's vital that you speak to your GP, or a travel clinic, and protect yourself against malaria."
