Research by TravelSupermarket, which studied data from more than 100,000 package holidays over April 8-22, reported prices had dropped by as much as 24% year-on-year.
Week-long packages to hotspots such as Majorca, Corfu, the Algarve and Ibiza are now available from around £100pp, including flights, according to the price comparison website.
TravelSupermarket’s cheapest break led in from £108pp for a family of four during the Easter school holidays to Corfu for a seven-night, three-star self-catering package.
This was against its lowest priced three-star deal during the same period in 2018 of £698 for a family of four to the Algarve – a price difference the website branded “virtually unheard of”.
The research was splashed on the front page of The Times on Saturday under the headline “Easter holiday prices plunge as Brexit fears put off passengers”.
An Abta spokesperson pointed out, though, that while prices around a particular period could fluctuate, the association was “not hearing of any patterns of discounting for Easter”.
Tony Mann, director of Idle Travel in Bradford, was surprised by the findings. “We’ve seen reasonable prices but nowhere near the £100pp deals we saw in the paper,” he told TTG.
“Headlines like that are very unhelpful. If customers see ‘£100 for Greece’ and we tell them it’s actually £500, it makes the sale very difficult.”
Lee Hunt, owner of Deben Travel, agreed: “I’ve been keeping an eye out for my own holiday but there’s nothing as good as what’s been quoted. [There’s] definitely not a price slash.”
Kim Lacey, manager of Baldwins Travel, Tunbridge Wells, added: “We haven’t seen any £100 deals. Tour operators have no choice but to hold out on price or else everyone’s margins will be impacted.”
Despite this, Noel Josephides, Sunvil chairman and Aito director, said he saw the report as “a fair reflection” of the market, with Brexit “aggravating” other issues such as overcapacity and 2018’s hot summer to create “a deals-driven market”.
