There was a time when a ‘sale’ meant that you could get your hands on a real bargain.

End of Season Sales, January Sales, Closing Down Sales, and Last Minute Sales are all used to entice those of us who are on the lookout for cut-price goods, but since the (wonderful) invention of the World Wide Web – I’m not so sure that we are actually saving anything during these sales… especially when it comes to flight tickets!

One particular airline (who shall remain unnamed…) recently ended their “end of season sale”, and while their long-haul flight prices did jump up significantly the day after the sale ended, two days later those same flights actually cost less than they did during the ‘sale’!

Admittedly, the difference in cost isn’t significant (approximately £10 per person), but it does make you wonder if it is worth shopping during the sale, or should we simply wait until the time is right for us?

Flight prices, especially scheduled flights to long-haul destinations, are relatively stable, and if one airline hikes their prices, you can pretty much guarantee five others will drop their prices to compete, so it’s all about shopping around, and being flexible, and if you don’t mind a longish stopover (4 hours and more), you can get your flights for much less.

One way not to save money on your flights is by booking last-minute.  It used to be the case 20 years ago, but today, the longer you wait, the higher your ticket will be – so as soon as you have decided on your dream holiday destination, get your flight tickets and then worry about your accommodations.

Hotel accommodations are where you can save money, and by visiting destinations in their ‘low season’ such as Sicily in January and Cape Town in July, you can make a huge saving on your hotel costs with many properties offering ‘Stay 7 Pay 5’ deals.

So if you missed out on the latest airline sale – worry not… you probably saved yourself a tenner!