Eight cheap places for every type of holiday, from winter sun to rail trips

The cost of living may be ever-increasing, but the travel bug is as contagious as ever. According to the latest Destinations to Watch report from Abta, the travel association, 71 per cent of Britons are planning trips abroad this year, up from 68 per cent in 2025. A recent YouGov survey on international travel found that only one in five Britons never holiday abroad, and among those who do, rising costs have been the biggest influence on the frequency of trips. If you’re one of those who won’t sacrifice holiday time, you may well be looking to cut costs when travelling. (Photo: Getty)

Our picks for the best value holidays

WTM’s 2025 Global Travel Report suggests that to save money, travellers are looking towards emerging destinations for cheaper getaways. This is backed up by the YouGov survey, which found that almost a third of respondents looked for cheaper destinations to visit last year. For example, Eastern Europe can offer lower costs compared to traditional – often expensive – European tourism hotspots, while a strong pound keeps winter sun escapes in North Africa, and even long-haul trips to India, affordable. From low-cost Moroccan rail adventures to budget city breaks in Belgrade, these are our picks for the best value places to holiday in 2026. (Photo: Anastasiia Krivenok/Getty)

Winter sun: Tunisia

Few places offer cheaper package deals than Tunisia. With temperatures hovering around 18°C in January and rising to 20°C by March, it’s the perfect place to soak up winter sun without the hefty price tag.EasyJet Holidays offers cheap packages to Djerba, a Unesco World Heritage-listed island with medieval mosques, ancient synagogues and glorious Mediterranean beaches. A week’s all-inclusive at the Royal Kathargo Resort & Thalasso, a four-star resort with a heated outdoor pool and direct beach access, starts from £332pp, including flights, transfers and hold luggage. (Photo: Getty)

The perfect time to explore the history

On the mainland, On The Beach offers stays at five-star properties at two-star prices. A week at the Iberostar Selection Royal El Mansour, overlooking the bay of Mahdia’s Mediterranean seas, starts from £235pp, including flights, breakfast and dinner. Winter is an excellent time to explore Tunisia’s history and nature, and Mahdia is a day trip from El Jem’s Roman amphitheatre (like Rome’s Colosseum, without the crowds) and the Sahara Desert’s rolling sand dunes. (Photo: Getty)

Rail adventures: Morocco

For those with more time to travel, “rail-based travel can be one of the most affordable ways for Britons to holiday in 2026,” according to flight-free travel company Byway. It offers trips to Morocco from as little as £100 per day, representing great value if you’re as interested in the journey as the destination. With modern, high-speed trains connecting major cities, it’s also efficient. Byway’s 11-day rail, bus and ferry adventure to Morocco starts in London with a Eurostar to Paris, after which you can explore Roman ruins and denim heritage in elegant Nîmes, tapas bar-hop in Madrid and cross the Strait of Gibraltar from Tarifa to Tangier by ferry. (Photo: Getty)

Explore Unesco-listed streets

Take the train to Fez to explore the Unesco-listed Old Medina’s winding alleyways before another train to Marrakech, where you’ll stay in a traditional riad, feast on tagine and visit sights such as the 19th-century Bahia Palace. The 11-day overland to Morocco trip starts from £1,126pp, including all overland travel and accommodation. (Photo: Alxey Pnferov/Getty)

Culture: India

Post Office Travel Money’s 2025 Long Haul Holiday Report ranks Asia as the top region for a bargain long-haul break, and India offers excellent value for a cultural getaway. Sterling is strong here, with £1 equating to around 120 Indian rupees – enough for a Kingfisher beer. Local lunches will set you back 250 rupees (£2) and dinner in a fancier restaurant around 1,200 rupees (£10). Flight prices are competitive, too. IndiGo launched direct Heathrow to Mumbai flights in October 2025, with returns on sale from £423. Gulf airlines such as Emirates and Etihad offer regional connections via Dubai and Abu Dhabi, respectively, from £466 return. (Photo: Getty)

Tranquil alternative to Mumbai’s high rises

If India’s megacities feel too overwhelming a prospect, tour operator Trafalgar recommends heading to the country’s southwestern shores, where Kerala’s backwaters offer a tranquil alternative to Mumbai’s high rises or Rajasthan’s well-trodden tourist circuit. Its six-day India Sightseeing Tour of Kerala from Kochi, Periyar & Kumarakom, from £855pp, is a cultural journey along the Periyar River. Visit spice gardens, watch kalaripayattu (a Keralan martial art) performances, and (if you’re lucky) spot an elephant or two on the river banks. (Photo: Getty)

Hiking: Romania

Romania has not adopted the Euro, so your money goes further compared to other EU destinations; £1 converts to around 6 Romanian leu, with a pint of beer costing around 10 leu. No-frills flights to Bucharest start from £15 one way, making Romania a bargain getaway. Local prices drop further in the country’s rural heartland. Headwater recommends a cost-effective hiking holiday in the Carpathian Mountains, a wilderness where bears roam and peaks rise upwards of 2,600 metres. (Photo: Getty)

Visit Dracula's castle

Start with a visit to “Dracula’s Castle” in Bran, Transylvania, before following the Path of the Outlaws into the Carpathian foothills. Guesthouses in mountain villages such as Magura provide budget lodgings for alpine treks into the spectacular Piatra Craiului National Park, where you can hike into the karst rock scenery of Zernesti Gorge. Headwater’s eight-day, self-guided Walking in Transylvania and the Carpathian Mountains tour starts from £909pp, excluding flights. (Photo: Jeremy Woodhouse)

Wellness and winter sports: Poland

Post Office Travel Money consistently ranks Polish cities as some of the cheapest options for short breaks from the UK. And in the YouGov survey, Poland was the only European country from nine surveyed that was perceived to offer better value compared to the year before. Krakow is well served by no-frills flights, from where a two-hour bus or train ride – trains can cost as little as £7 one way – brings you to Zakopane, Poland’s wellness and winter sports hub.(Photo: Getty)

Make the most with pools, hot tubs and saunas

It’s located in the foothills of the Tatra Mountains, on the border with Slovakia and ski passes cost as little as 119 zlotys (£25) per day. The Tatry Super Ski pass allows you to hit 84km of trails across 19 of Zakopane’s best ski resorts, with slopes catering to all abilities. The pass also allows access to thermal baths, including Termia Bania, where 15 pools are filled with natural, geothermal waters reaching temperatures of 34-38°C. There is plenty of bargain accommodation, but for an option with pools, hot tubs and saunas, Hotel Paryski Art & Business has doubles from £103 including breakfast. (Photo: Getty)

Cruise: The Low Countries

Cruising doesn’t have to be expensive when you start closer to home. Iglu Cruise recommends joining departures from UK ports to save on transport costs, with a trip across the Channel to Belgium and the Netherlands the top pick for a cheap getaway. From £219pp, you can score an all-inclusive outside cabin on Ambassador’s Ambition. Onboard, enjoy sophisticated British cuisine at the Buckingham and Holyrood restaurants, or relax in the spa as you cruise from Tilbury to Zeebrugge, arriving at 8am. Enjoy a day out surrounded by the canals and gothic architecture of nearby Bruges before your second overnight sailing back to the UK. For a longer trip, you can join Ambition for a four-night, full board voyage from Newcastle, calling at Amsterdam and Bruges, from £220pp. (Photo: Getty)

City break: Belgrade

The Serbian capital is an excellent choice for a cheap city break, with no-frills flights available from around £25 one way from the UK. Serbia’s budget prices haven’t gone unnoticed either, with Abta including the Balkan nation in its Destinations to Watch List for 2026. Abta describes Belgrade as “hip and buzzy”, a city where you can explore Yugoslav history by day, before heading out for cocktails and rakia at night. Save a few pounds by joining Belgrade Walking Tours on a “free” (you pay what you wish) downtown tour. You’ll stroll through Republic Square, visit Kalemegdan Park on the banks of the Sava River and explore Belgrade Fortress, which has a history stretching back to the 3rd century BC. (Photo: Getty)

Affordable luxury

Splash out a little, and for €30 (£26) you can have a nostalgic day out with Yugotour, driving around in a vintage Yugoslavian-era car, visiting the Museum of History of Yugoslavia and seeing former dictator Josip Broz Tito’s mausoleum. Belgrade is steeped in affordable luxury, with doubles at the five-star Metropol Palace available from £88. A la carte mains at The Twenty Two, Metropol Palace’s Michelin-recommended fine-dining restaurant, start from just £14. (Photo: Getty)

Summer beach break: Lithuania

Swerve summer crowds with a budget beach break in the Baltics. The seaside resort of Šventoji is considered by Lithuanians to be the most affordable beach town in the country, according to the tourist board. Laid back and family-friendly, Šventoji has a sandy, 5km-long beach, with plenty of empty space. You’ll find more sandy beaches around nearby Palanga, another resort town known for its long pier, while the port city of Klaipeda (a 40-minute drive south), is home to wonderfully well-preserved 18th-century Prussian architecture and offers access to the sandy Curonian Spit National Park. (Photo: Getty)

Lower cost of living

Once you’re there, expect reasonable prices; cost of living database Numbeo reports that Lithuania has, on average, a cost of living 23.5 per cent lower than the UK. Ryanair has £15 flights to Palanga (10 minutes from Šventoji), and you can score doubles at homely guesthouses like Floros Simfonija for £51, in peak summer.  (Photo: Getty)