SELF CATERING HOLIDAYS IN SPAIN

  Thomson Holidays  - Click Here

 

COSTA BLANCA

BENIDORM

COSTA DEL SOL

COSTA AZAHAR

COSTA BRAVA

MAJORCA

MENORCA

IBIZA

CANARY ISLANDS

NORTHERN SPAIN

WEBCAMS

CAR RENTAL

 BOOKS

 DVD's

HOLIDAYS

SELF CATERING HOLIDAYS IN SPAIN

 

Self Catering Holidays In Spain

The advent of the budget airlines has seen a sharp rise in self catering holidays to Spain. Instead of using travel agents, many people are now choosing to rent apartments and villas direct from the property owners.  Dealing directly with the property owner means cutting out agents fees and in the current economic climate it is quite common for customers to barter  with the  owners and receive discounted prices.  Quite substantial savings can be made by shopping around.  Flight prices are governed by market conditions and even with rising fuel prices, bargains can be found.  If you live in an area which has more than one airport within a forty mile radius, it is well worth checking flights from all of them.  Many people believe that by leaving a flight booking until as late as possible, a better deal can be found.  In fact, the opposite is true, the earlier you book, the cheaper the price.  Of course there can be pitfalls in arranging your own holiday, without the backing of a tour operator, the risks are bound to be a bit higher but the savings to be made usually outweigh the risk.

  Villas and Apartments

There are literally thousands of privately owned apartments and villas on the Spanish costas, the Balearic and Canary islands.  Many owners choose to rent out their properties during the times they aren't using them.  Some use letting agencies but many others rent privately cutting out agents fees.  Privately owned apartments and villas to rent, can be found on hundreds of property and travel websites.  Our website has pages devoted to private property rental in some of the most popular areas.  The owners are normally contacted through an online form which sends an email straight to their inbox.  Once received, the owners will usually respond within 24hrs and direct correspondence can then proceed.   We have decided not to include rental tariffs on the majority of rental property advertisements.  We have taken this decision to avoid out of date prices being shown.  At the moment, we have advertisements for privately rented apartments and villas in the following areas. 

 The Costa Blanca

Benidorm, La Cala de Finestrat, Javea, Denia, Calpe, Moraira, Torrevieja and other areas

Costa del Sol and Andalucia

Marbella, Puerto Banus, Mijas, Ronda and Granada

 Tenerife

 Majorca

Menorca

The Most Popular Resorts

Spain's most popular resort is Benidorm on the Costa Blanca.  It caters for a wide variety of tastes and has two fantastic beaches.  It must be said that Benidorm isn't everybody's cup of tea, its big and brash and has some pretty down-market areas but it remains as popular as ever with many holidaymakers from the UK and beyond.  For a family beach holiday, I don't think you can beat Cala Bona and Cala Millor in Majorca.   These resorts are just right for young families, they offer a great balance of activities for the kids and a relaxed nightlife for Mum and Dad.  A bit further up the coast is the family resort of Alcudia.  It has a  huge bay and hundreds of bars and restaurants. This would be an ideal place for families with slightly older kids who want something to do in the evenings.  It feels safe enough to let them  have a bit of a free rein.  Continuing up the coast, you come to the resort of Puerto Polensa which is quieter and more up market than Alcudia.   Young people looking for a hectic nightlife will love San Antonio in Ibiza,  Torremolinos on the Costa del Sol and Magaluf in Majorca, (not forgetting Benidorm of course).  If you prefer a quiet holiday just admiring the scenery and watching the waves crashing in, some of the Canary islands would be perfect. These are just a handful of the hundreds of resorts up and down the coast and in the islands. 

Books About Spain

Probably the best way of learning about areas of Spain before deciding where to go is to read a few books on the subject.  There is some excellent reading available covering most areas, I've listed a few good books below which tell you all you need to know about the most popular places for beach holidays.

  

  

  

 

Tour Operators

If you like the idea of an apartment or villa but prefer to organise it through a recognised tour operator, most of the well known high street names have villa and apartment sections on their websites.

Thomson Beach - click here!

The big players like Thomas Cook and Thomson Holidays have a large slice of the market.  This year (2008) has been pretty disastrous for the travel companies, the economic problems at home and in most other areas of Europe, have forced many people to cancel their annual holiday in the sun and instead, find something in the UK.  This has tended to push up prices at home but with some of the worst weather on record the UK holiday industry isn't faring much better.   

Special Offers

As a result of the economic problems at home, there hasn't been a better time to find a bargain beach holiday.  This always seems a bit ironic.  You've got the cash but the prices are through the roof, you're broke and there's loads of amazing deals around.  If you are in the fortunate position of having some spare cash to splash out on a holiday, you really can find some fantastic prices.  Many travel companies have slashed their remaining 2008 prices. Two  of the biggest UK tour operators, as mentioned above, Thomas Cook and Thomson Holidays are offering some big discounts on late deals, click here to see what's on offer from Thomas Cook and for Thomson Holidays click here.  Another excellent online travel agent established in 1998 are Holiday Bargains.  True to their name, they are offering some of the cheapest deals around.  Having supplied over 250,000 holidays, they must be doing something right, you can view their last minute deals here. In the past couple of years, comparison websites have become commonplace.  Most offer car insurance but recently a few have started to appear comparing prices from hotels and other services.  Henoo.com show price comparisons on package holidays and apartments from most of the major tour operators to lots of destinations, you can try it out here. 

 

 

Jet2.Com

Most people know Jet2.com as a low cost airline, what many don't realise, is that Jet2 also offer some great  holidays.  All the major Spanish holiday destinations are covered, including the Costa Blanca, Costa del Sol,Costa Brava, Majorca, Ibiza and the Canaries.  Having its own aircraft, Jet2 are able to offer some superb prices.   Find out what's  available by clicking here Another company associated with budget airlines are Monarch holidays.  Being part of a large group makes them another of the biggest and most trusted tour operators in the UK.

 

Amazingly Cheap Apartments

If you just want a cheap apartment without trying to book one privately, try  FreshHolidays.com who offer over 6,500 properties around the Mediterranean.  This year, they have sold more than 700,000 passengers and projections for next year are over a million.  Some of the  apartment prices on offer are incredibly cheap,  starting as low as £3.00 a night for 3 star accommodation.  YES you did read that correctly!!!   I know you think there must be a catch but we couldn't find one, in fact when I last looked, I found one at £2.87.  You probably don't believe this  have a look here.  I've just re-checked to make sure I wasn't making a mistake and found some for £1.57 a night!! (In Turkey) beats me how they can do it.

Car Rental

If you do decide to rent a villa or apartment, hiring a car in Spain is a fantastic way of seeing the surrounding area.  EasyCar part of the easyJet group have become one of the most popular car rental choices, they operate in most Spanish resorts and have some great deals available at the moment with prices as little as £12 a day.  When you think about it, renting a car can work out cheaper than a taxi from the airport to your destination.  For example, a taxi from Alicante to Benidorm will set you back about 60 euros, that's 120 euros return.  Hiring a car for a week could work out less than 100 euros. 

CONTACT  ADVERTISING  ADVERTISING TERMS & CONDITIONS DISCLAIMER

  ;