With staycations steadily becoming a thing of the past, experts pinpointed the cheapest hidden gems across Europe that offer return flights for under £75. Money-saving experts at Savoo delved into the details of upcoming flights and travel trends for 2025 to find the cheapest flights, and the top tips for getting your holiday in under budget.
Spain
Despite holding some of the most popular cities for Brits to vacay in, Spain earned not one but two spots on the list of cheapest return prices. In first place is the seaside Costa del Sol, with return flights going as low as £51.
It takes roughly the same amount of time to fly to Costa del Sol from London as it does to get you to Manchester via train, only with a hefty price difference as the money-saving experts noted an average one-way train up north costs £54.50. Mallorca also made the list with potential return flights from £62 if you pick your times and dates right.
Czech Republic
One of the more high profile destinations on the list is the capital city of the Czech Republic, Prague, with return flights starting at £57. Including average hotel prices, cheap and mid-range food to keep you going as well as some beers and coffees over a weekend trip will set you back £254.27 according to the money experts.
Poland
Krakow comes in third place at £59.50 for return flights and the alternative in Warsaw has a slightly higher premium at £64.30. But both areas also earned a spot on Savoo’s cheapest long weekend getaways in second at £231.57 and third place with £242.60 respectively including hotels, food and drinks.
Slovakia
Rounding out the top five is Barislava in Slovakia with £63.40 return flights available. The historic city also came in just under Prague for the cheapest weekend getaway, costing roughly £267.89 for three days and two nights.
Finally, Budapest in Hungary, Vilnius in Lithuania, Riga in Latvia and Lisbon in Portugal rounded out the latter part of the top 10 with return flights ranging between £65 and £71. The experts warned that while hidden gems and lesser-known destinations like Bratislava are likely to have cheaper flights all-year round, there are some ways to bag a bargain on even the most popular tourist destinations.
The experts shared their top five money-saving tips while booking flights. Starting with the most obvious in avoiding popular dates like Fridays or school holidays when trips are likely to be more expensive due to increased demand.
If you can be even more flexible with dates, the experts recommended: “Last-minute deals can save you a ton of money. So if you’re brave, try to hold off booking until a couple of weeks before you want to go.”
Just like avoiding popular travel dates, avoiding the popular airports can save some change for your getaway. The experts explained: “Consider an airport close by. For example, if you’re headed to Orlando, you don’t just need to fly into Orlando International Airport. Both Melbourne and Tampa have airports with flights from the UK, which can cost a lot less.”
Layovers generally tend to be cheaper than direct flights, up to 50% in some cases, they claimed, although it is more time-consuming. Using voucher codes, discounts and comparison sites can also earn back some cash for your trip.
One subtle way to ensure you’re not getting priced out of a getaway is to look for flights using an incognito mode browser tab, the experts recommended. This avoids installing permanent cookies on your browser so you’re less likely to be shown inflated prices sometimes given to people who are consistently browsing some flights.