Greece may be tottering, but almost two-thirds of holiday travellers will be heading for the eurozone, where the strong pound means prices in some resorts are up to 20 per cent lower than last year.
After starting 2015 at 1.28 euros the pound rose sharply to almost 1.40 within a few weeks, and was still at 1.38 last week - with the euro likely to weaken again if a Grexit looms.
Amid the good cheer, it pays to be wary of those hidden traps that can turn a cheaper holiday into an expensive one. Here are the Sunday Herald's top tips.
*Book your insurance in good time. Cancellation insurance only covers you for events you didn't know about before you arranged your cover, says Caroline Lloyd at Gocompare.com Travel Insurance. "So if a family member becomes seriously ill just before you're due to travel, you can't buy travel insurance with the intention of cancelling your trip. Similarly, you'll be unable to obtain cover for a planned strike by airline staff. Insurers check when you could have first become aware of the potential disruption." Cancellation cover limits and excesses vary widely from unlimited cover to just £500, and excesses range from £15 to £250 to unlimited cover, while a quarter of policies offer a discount for excluding cancellation/curtailment cover.
*Take your EHIC. One in five UK adults who have been abroad have never heard of the European Health Insurance Card, and many more are confused about the level of protection it provides. "Having an EHIC can help you to access free or, more likely, discounted emergency medical services whilst abroad but it's not a guarantee that you won't have to pay a thing, and it certainly won't be any help if you need medical repatriation to the UK, which can cost thousands of pounds," Lloyd says. "Having an EHIC may also mean that you don't have to claim on your travel insurance and pay an excess for minor injuries, and some insurers will even waive the policy excess for medical claims where you've used your EHIC, but where it doesn't cover the full cost of your treatment."
Beware phoney EHIC websites which try to charge for a card that is freely available from the official NHS website
*If you like the idea of a pre-paid currency card, which allows you to load on money at a good exchange rate then draw it down abroad, choose carefully to avoid hidden costs. As well as the rates being offered, you need to compare fees for card purchase, cash machine withdrawals in the UK and overseas, and account inactivity or closure. Check ICE's rates on its Click & Collect service available at branches including Glasgow Central Station. Other competitive cards include Ukash, Caxtonfx, Fair FX, and MyTravel.
* Consider applying for a credit card just for holiday use. Cards from Halifax (Clarity card) ,the Post Office, Nationwide (Select) and Saga (for over-55s) offer the best value for overseas usage, helping you to avoid those usage fees typically of 2.75 or 2.99 per cent which can come as a nasty surprise on your bank statement. Andrew Hagger of Moneycomms.co.uk says some banks will also hit you with a fixed charge of £1 or £1.50 just for using your debit card, no matter how small the purchase. "It's worth spending a couple of minutes to check with your own bank what the charges are for your particular plastic before you set off, rather than getting a nasty shock when you check your account on your return."
*Keep your smartphone in check. Britons holidaying in the EU racked up £573 million in roaming charges over 12 months, despite caps on charges intended to prevent 'bill shocks', according to uSwitch. One in six paid an extra £100 on their normal bill, with the average additional payment coming in at £61.
The biggest mistakes were not turning off the mobile data 'roaming' button, thinking a service was wi-fi when it wasn't, and not switching off voicemails.
*Motorists, do your homework. More than a quarter of those planning to driving abroad this summer do not have proper insurance, or don't know if they do, according to M & S Bank, and the same applies on breakdown cover for more than two in five. A third said, unwisely, that they weren't planning to take the time to familiarise themselves with the driving laws of the countries they are travelling to or through.
CASE STUDY
Edward Chandler, a user experience consultant for leading websites, switched his current account from TSB to Halifax recently, partly because he was impressed with the Halifax Clarity credit card. It is virtually the only card in the market offering free overseas transactions, and it also pays £5 a month cashback for a minimum spend of £300 on the card. Chandler says: "My wife is Indian and we travel a lot, so paying no fees makes a big difference. You also get something back for using the card, which could be £120 a year."
The card also has no cash withdrawal fees and a representative rate (available to over half of all applicants) of 18.9 per cent.
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