Research by flight comparison site Skyscanner has revealed that UK consumers are getting it wrong when it comes to deciphering ‘cheap’ holiday destinations from their more expensive rivals. When Skyscanner asked over 1,500 UK consumers to score 30 popular holiday destinations on whether they believed them to be expensive or cheap, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland and Denmark topped the list. However, research into the actual cost of holidaying in…
Research by flight comparison site Skyscanner has revealed that UK consumers are getting it wrong when it comes to deciphering ‘cheap’ holiday destinations from their more expensive rivals. When Skyscanner asked over 1,500 UK consumers to score 30 popular holiday destinations on whether they believed them to be expensive or cheap, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland and Denmark topped the list. However, research into the actual cost of holidaying in each country revealed that, whilst Switzerland and Denmark were indeed in the top five (taking second and third spots), the priciest hotspot was actually France.
Brazil, which was perceived to be just outside the top ten cheapest countries at position 21 in the list of most expensive destinations, it was in fact the fourth dearest country while Russia, which only ranked 16th place in the perceptions poll, was the fifth most expensive.
Surprisingly, the Scandinavian countries of Sweden and Norway were far lower down when ranked by actual cost, taking places 13 and 18 respectively.
Least expensive: perception versus reality
When it came to consumer attitudes at the other end of the scale, the respondents were far closer to the mark. India, Thailand and Morocco were perceived to be the cheapest places to visit and this rang true in the research with all three featuring in the top ten budget countries.
However Mexico, which was considered by the UK public to be the fourth most competitively priced country, actually emerged as the tenth most expensive, showing a huge gulf between widespread opinion and genuine prices.
According to the price information researched, the most budget-friendly countries currently are Cyprus, Greece, South Africa, Dominican Republic and Morocco. Euro-zones Cyprus and Greece were surprise entries in the list of less costly countries, having been perceived as the 14th and 17th most expensive destinations.
Flight cost has significant impact on total holiday spend
The total holiday cost for a week’s holiday alters significantly when flight price is included, highlighting that securing a cheap flight is imperative if money is a major factor in choosing a destination.
As expected, long haul destinations see more notable hikes in ranking with South Africa rising from its place at third from the bottom of the list to 14th most expensive destination, while New Zealand rose from its ranking in the bottom ten of the list to sit within the top ten most expensive countries. Thailand also showed considerable movement, from sixth cheapest country to the 14th cheapest.
Equally, some of the shorter haul destinations such as Spain and Sweden, which also benefit from routes served by budget airlines, see significant drops in their position in the total cost ranking once flight price is factored in, moving from 8th most expensive to 15th, and 13th to 21st respectively.
Commented Barry Smith, Director and co-founder of Skyscanner: “These figures show it is vital to consider all the hidden extras when planning a holiday, particularly that of the flight. Consumers shouldn’t assume because a destination is known to be cheap when you get there, that the total cost won’t escalate considerably unless once the cost of flights are added, making it a far pricier choice than some of the short haul alternatives.”
The myth exposed: Turkey versus Greece
Overall, Greece was perceived by the UK public to be significantly more costly than Turkey, ranking 19th most expensive versus Turkey which is in 28th place. In-resort costs show Greece is in fact 25% more economical than Turkey and proves to be the second most competitively priced destination overall, both with and without flights.
Skyscanner’s Barry Smith commented, “It may be that the riots in May, the strike action facing ferries and the financial meltdown have resulted in many prices being slashed and Greece becoming a very attractive destination for a bargain break.”
Maria Whiteman, CEO of directline holidays certainly thinks so: “Many of the operators we work with are currently offering promotional prices to Greece in order to encourage bookings after recent negative publicity – from a value perspective it really is an extremely good time to go.”
The myth exposed: Dubai as a millionaire’s playground
As fifth most expensive destination in the perception ranking, many Brits clearly consider Dubai a hangout for high rollers. However, Skyscanner’s cost research actually puts Dubai in 12th place, moving to only 14th most expensive destination if you factor in flights as well.
Skyscanner’s Barry Smith concluded: “We decided to undertake this research in response to consumer demand for greater price transparency on their trips abroad. Whilst the results are to some extent subjective, they do provide a broad guideline of total holiday cost.
It’s extremely interesting to see how many destinations challenge common perceptions and I’m more than a little surprised to see France, a destination only a stone’s throw away, emerge as the most expensive overall holiday.”
TravelDailyNews Asia-Pacific editorial team has an experience of over 35 years in B2B travel journalism as well as in tourism & hospitality marketing and communications.
