Bargain holidays for 2012

The January sales aren't just confined to high street retailers - plenty of travel firms have some eye-watering deals on at the moment.

It may be the thrashing rain and apocalyptic wind battering the lovemoney.com offices this week, but I can’t help daydreaming about a week or two in the sunshine.

Not that I’m likely to enjoy any, as the idea of taking my toddler on a plane leaves me in a cold sweat, but for those of you without small children/braver than me (delete as appropriate), there’s good news! Plenty of holiday firms have January sales on breaks away in the sun at the moment, so let’s take a look at the deals currently on offer.

Thomas Cook

The travel agent Thomas Cook has an exciting looking promotion on at the moment, with as much as £400 off per booking on selected package holidays (including transport and accommodation) for this summer. The deals run between 1st May and 31st October, but you’ll need to move quickly before they disappear.

Here’s a sample of some of the deals enjoying a whopping £400 off.

Destination	Flights from	Departing	Nights	Board	Star rating	Price per person
Crete (Koni Village)	East Midlands	28th August	7	Self-catered	3	£355
Malta (Preluna Hotel)	Glasgow	7th August	7	All-inclusive	3	£441
Algarve (Vila Petra)	Gatwick	31st May	7	Self-catered	4	£398
Adnan (Piril Hotel)	Birmingham	7th July	7	All-inclusive	4	£543
Red Sea (Tropitel Naama Bay)	Cardiff	18th August	14	All-inclusive	3	£698
Florida (Hard Rock Hotel)	Manchester	4th May	7	Room only	5	£939
Cuba (Iberostar Tainos)	Gatwick	7th June	14	All inclusive	4	£976

Virgin Holidays

Virgin Holidays has launched its sale, with holidays available from £399, and as much as 44% off certain deals. Booking online can also save you up to 33%.

Here are the ten deals with the biggest savings at the time of writing:

Destination	Flights from	Date range	Nights	Board	Star rating	Price per person	Saving
Barbados (Turtle Beach)	Gatwick/Manchester	1st-30th September	7	All inclusive	4	£1,085	44%
St Lucia (Bay Gardens Hotel)	Gatwick	15th-29th May	7	Room only	4	£689	41%
Boston (Midtown Hotel)	Heathrow	5th-19th March	3	Room only	3	£399	41%
Washington (Hampton Inn)	Heathrow	16th-30th January	3	Room only	3	£489	41%
Mauritius (Sugar Beach)	Heathrow	1st-28th February	8	Half board	5	£1,329	41%
Grenada (Greandian)	Gatwick	1st-30th June	7	Room only	3	£595	40%
Lake Tahoe (Harveys Lake Tahoe)	Heathrow	5th-19th March	7	Room only	4	£619	40%
North Conway (Hampton Inn & Suites)	Heathrow	5th-20th March	7	Breakfast included	3	£475	39%
California (Knotts Berry Farm Resort)	Heathrow	23rd-31st January	5	Room only	3	£559	38%
Las Vegas (Stratosphere	Gatwick/Manchester	11th-25th March	3	Room only	3	£615	38%

These deals are changing all the time though, so you’ll need to act quickly to take advantage!

Thomson

Thomson has launched a grand holiday sale, with a whole host of exciting looking jaunts detailed in the sale brochure, which you can check out here. Best of all, for holidays departing between 1st May and 31st October, couples can save up to £200!

There are also guaranteed free child places on certain deals, so a great option for families.

British Airways

Easily my favourite name for a sale comes from British Airways, which is currently promoting the ‘Goodbye Winter Sale’.

There are absolutely hundreds of deals, so below I’ve highlighted a couple of favourites:

Destination	Flights from	Date range	Nights	Board	Star rating	Price per person
San Francisco	Heathrow	9th January - 31st March	3	All inclusive	3	£499
Antigua	Gatwick	1st May – 13th July	7	All inclusive	4	£899
Mexico City	Heathrow	16th January – 26th March	3	Room only	3	£659
Hong Kong	Heathrow	7th May – 19th June	5	Room only	5	£669
Cape Town	Heathrow	23rd April – 31st May	5	Bed and breakfast	5	£1,169
Abu Dhabi	Heathrow	21st February – 15th May	3	Bed and breakfast	3	£479
Faro	City	Until 24th April	2	Room only	3	£155
Rome	City	Until 29th February	2	Bed and breakfast	3	£149

You’ll notice that all of the holidays I’ve highlighted depart from London airports – that’s not me being London-centric, but rather all of the British Airways holidays included in this sale either depart from or go via London airports.

Lastminute.com

You can currently get up to 50% off if you book your holiday through lastminute.com before the 16th January, while there are also a number of deals which require only a small, up-front deposit.

Here’s a selection of the deals with up to 50% off at the moment:

Destination	Flights from	Departs	Nights	Board	Star rating	Price per person
Cyprus (Louis King Jason)	Gatwick	5th March	7	Self-catered	4	£186.50
Egypt (Sheraton Sharm)	Luton	27th January	7	All inclusive	5	£432
Lanzarote (Dream Gran Castillo)	Manchester	19th January	7	All inclusive	5	£504.50
Mexico (Celuisma Dos Playas)	Glasgow	14th April	7	All inclusive	3	£623.50
Tobago (Turtle Beach)	Gatwick	1st February	7	Room only	3	£864.50
Mexico (Occidental Grand)	Manchester	25th April	14	All inclusive	5	£1,066.50

To see the rest of the 50% off deals, check out this section of the lastminute.com website.

Emirates

If you’re flying with Emirates, be sure to book online before the 31st January. Not only is the airline offering discounted fares on economy class seats, but you’ll also be entered into a prize draw for an iPad 2. Just be sure to use the code UKJAN12 when you book.

Your holidays

Have you booked your holiday for this summer? Or are you staying in the UK? And are there any other holiday retailers we’ve missed? Let us know via the comment box below.