If you’re smart about it you can still afford to go on holiday, the key is to spend time researching it and shop around to find the best deals. Don’t be afraid to haggle, research your restaurants and try to stay away from the main tourist areas, as they can be the most expensive. Below are 10 things to make your holiday cheaper, I hope you find it useful and I’d love to hear of any success stories.

1.Use a price comparison site

There are a few around www.skyskanner.ie www.gohop.ie (for travelling in Europe). www.kayak.com, www.edreams.com (both good for travelling, not particularly good for Europe), www.ebookers.com & www.trailfinders.ie (both good for travelling outside Europe). Also check out travel agent flights for flight only deals (they buy them in advance and could be trying to sell them off)- www.sunway.ie

2. Avoid Ryanair Transaction Charges

If you’re booking with Ryanair avoid the Credit Card charge by using a prepaid credit card to avoid paying the transaction charges (this usually equates to €5/6 per booking). If you get a prepaid Mastercard (from www.payzone.ie) and then just top it up at most Spars (or there are a full list of outlets on the site). It costs you €3 to top up your card each time, but it’s still a lot less than the transaction charges.

3. The Best Hotel Sites

To find a cheap hotel go to www.booking.com, www.hotels.com www.budgetplaces.com are the cheapest placed to find a hotel. Be warned if you go for the cheapest option, there is usually a no cancellation policy (check the small print). Quick tip: Check out the hotel’s ratings on trip advisor (www.tripadvisor.co.uk) as it might be a nice hotel in a bad location etc. (www.fatecheese.ie offer 10% cash back if you go to hotels.com through their site!)

4. Look Into Apartments Too

If there are a group of you going it might be a good option to look into an apartment – check out www.booking.com, www.Holiday-Rentals.co.uk, www.friendlyrentals.com It’s also a good idea to check local listings too, as they can sometimes be cheaper. Do a quick google search and compare all the prices and locations.

5. Last Minute Deals

If you just want a holiday in the sun and don’t care where, block off the dates and go for a last minute  package deals. There are tonnes of them around on all the holiday sites. www.gohop.ie, www.sunway.ie – you can get away for as little as €200 pp for one week.

6. Do Your Research

Go to www.tripadvisor.co.uk – go to the forum sections and type in your destination. You can then search that forum for cheap eats, things to do for free, or whatever. If you have a question of your own you can type in a new post and someone will get back to you (they have a resident expert in each area, so they’ll give you a local’s view, which is good if you want to keep out of the tourist spots which tend to be more expensive)

7. Cheap Airport Transfers

If you have booked a Ryanair flight that lands in the middle of a field somewhere, fear not it will not cost you an arm and a leg to get to your hotel. You pre-book yourself a cheap airport transfer on www.transfers4u.com – it will take you to your hotel and save you having to haggle with a local taxi driver.

8. Baggage Allowance

Most airlines have become a lot stricter on baggage allowance, so save yourself any unnecessary charges by getting yourself a luggage scales (you can get them in the €2 shop on George’s Street).

9. Avoid Plane Food

Pack yourself a picnic to take for the plane. Let’s face it the food it crap on planes  and a packet of small Pringles will cost you €4 on Ryanair. Plan ahead, pack yourself some sandwiches and treats for the plane (spend that €10 you’ve saved on good book for the hols!)

10. Sunscreen On The cheap

Sunscreen can be expensive so bulk buy. Look out for 2 for 1 offers on sunscreen and stock up (not for years, it does go off!).

Does anyone have good advice to share? Do you know of any good websites that save you money? Please share!