The best Christmas market bargains and cut-price Caribbean escapes

According to Skyscanner’s latest Travel Trends report, price remains a key consideration for travellers — with the cost of flights and hotels being the top deciding factors for almost one in two holidaymakers. Luckily, a great deal is never far away, whether it’s a last-minute or planned-ahead trip. Read on for examples of both of these, plus three no-fly staycations selling for a song.A collection of 19 properties across Britain, QHotels is offering 20 per cent off all stays until December 30 (excluding December 24-25). Included in the group are Cheshire’s grand Crewe Hall, the picturesque Norton Park near Winchester and the contemporary Belton Woods, just north of the market town of Grantham in Lincolnshire. The latter is spread across a 485-acre site where you’ll also find two distinct golf courses, an Elemis spa and 136 comfy bedrooms; rainy-day temptations nearby include Newark Air Museum. Three nights’ B&B costs from £166pp; book by October 31 (qhotels.co.uk).2. Cornish lighthouse stayThere are four holiday homes attached to Trevose Head lighthouseThe four holiday homes, formerly keepers’ cottages, attached to Trevose Head lighthouse on Cornwall’s north coast are reduced until November 3 if you stay at least three nights. Slightly sheltered by a headland, each has two bedrooms, little mobile reception, bright modern interiors and fine views of any passing storms; the 27m-high, grade II listed tower looms above. Padstow, with its Rick Stein restaurants, is a 20-minute drive away. Three nights’ self-catering for four starts from £1,061, including a welcome hamper (ruralretreats.co.uk).3. Lake District luxuryStorrs Hall is right beside Lake WindermereDinner will taste especially good at Storrs Hall this winter. At this country manor beside Lake Windermere, per-room dining credits from £200 to £275 are available on three-night stays between November 5 and February 24 (excluding classic rooms and December 24-31). Choose between the traditional main house and sleeker Boathouse or Lakeland suites, and between a fine-dining restaurant and classics such as slow-cooked pork belly in the bistro. Scenic drives or trips to the town of Grasmere will fill your days. Book by Thursday, October 24. Three nights’ B&B costs from £374pp (storrshall.com).Europe4. Christmas shopping in PragueThe Christmas market is held in Prague’s Old Town SquareGETTY IMAGESEvery third night is free at Prague’s five-star Hotel Paris — an art nouveau landmark in the Czech capital’s fairytale Old Town — until December 28. Travel after December 2 and the money you’ve saved can be spent on puppets, pottery or candles at classic Christmas markets held on Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square. Cafés on the surrounding cobbled streets supply hot chocolates whenever needed; the package also throws in a three-hour Prague walking tour. Three nights’ B&B costs from £859pp, including flights and private transfers (kirkerholidays.com).• 26 of the best Christmas markets in Europe for 20245. Croatia in advanceCavtat is in the south of CroatiaGETTY IMAGESThe southernmost Croatian resort town, red-roofed Cavtat offers a pleasant alternative to the hubbub of nearby Dubrovnik, where Sky Atlantic’s The Day of the Jackal was partly shot. Book a week’s stay at the chic Hotel Cavtat this month and you’ll save £400pp. Travel can be anytime before October 31, 2025. The hotel has a spectacular, bay-facing rooftop pool and 141 air-conditioned rooms; several pebble beaches are close; and it’s one hour by water taxi to Dubrovnik. Seven nights’ B&B costs from £699pp, including flights and transfers (tropicalsky.co.uk).6. Italian skiingClub Med Pragelato Sestriere is a luxury all-inclusive hotel in the Italian AlpsHere’s another chance to plan ahead. Savings of nearly 15 per cent are available on February trips to Club Med Pragelato Sestriere, the luxury all-inclusive brand’s base in the Italian Alps. Mimicking a hamlet with its wooden chalets, this 234-room resort sits within the expansive Via Lattea ski area, which extends into France and best suits intermediates. It also has a spa, a pool complex and restaurants serving truffle-laced fondue among staple Piedmontese plates. Departing on February 9, before half-term, seven nights’ all-inclusive costs from £2,194pp including flights and transfers (clubmed.co.uk).7. No-fly Norway cruiseThe cruise visits lots of light pollution-free spotsHere’s a comfortable way to find the northern lights in Scandinavia. Reduced in price by as much as £600pp, Fred Olsen’s two-week round-trip cruise from Portsmouth to the Norwegian coast visits lots of light pollution-free spots for aurora sightings between calls at mountain-framed towns with timber houses. Aboard the 1,353-passenger Bolette, you can also sign up for bridge games, expert lectures or cinema evenings. Departing on December 7 or January 18, 14 nights’ full board starts from £899pp (travelzoo.com).Long haul8. Cape Verde for solosVoi Praia de Chaves is on beach-lined Boa VistaGuaranteeing single travellers their own room, Friendship Travel is exclusively offering Times readers 10 per cent off a winter-sun trip to Cape Verde. On beach-lined Boa Vista, one of this African archipelago’s ten islands, is the Voi Praia de Chaves resort, where you’ll be based. Ranging from beach volleyball to darts, its daily activities offer plenty of opportunities to make friends, as do aqua aerobics classes and evening concerts. Seven nights’ all-inclusive departing on December 3 costs from £1,958pp if you quote “Thetimes”, including flights and transfers (friendshiptravel.com).• 24 of the best hotels in Cape Verde9. Jordan highlights tourA small-group tour will take you to all of Jordan’s must see — and safe — sitesAll of Jordan’s must-see sites — in areas categorised as safe by the UK Foreign Office — feature on a small-group tour whose November 24 departure is discounted by 30 per cent. Sign up and you’ll get to admire Wadi Rum’s otherworldly canyons, inspect Roman ruins at Jerash, snorkel in the Red Sea, float in the Dead Sea, sleep in a Bedouin desert camp and, of course, enter the rock-hewn ancient city of Petra. There’s even time for dinner in a local’s home. Seven nights’ B&B starts from £1,190pp, including transport and some activities (intrepidtravel.com). Fly to Amman.10. Bali bargain, IndonesiaMaya Ubud Resort and Spa maximises its spectacular riverside locationSurrounded by terraced rice paddies and tropical greenery, the Maya Ubud Resort and Spa maximises a spectacular riverside location with parts of its restaurants, rooftop bar and yoga pavilion all alfresco. The 108 airy suites and villas come with balconies or terraces too. Free shuttles take just ten minutes to reach Ubud’s town centre, where you might admire water temples or roam monkey-filled forests. Saving as much as 40 per cent, seven nights’ B&B between November 6 and December 15 begins at £1,089pp, including flights (awayholidays.co.uk).11. Dive in Bonaire, the CaribbeanBonaire ranks among the Caribbean’s best scuba-diving destinationsGETTY IMAGESDutch-administered Bonaire ranks among the Caribbean’s best scuba-diving destinations with the entirety of its coastline designated as a marine park. Based at the relaxed Buddy Dive Resort, whose Padi centre accompanies a pool and beachside restaurant, Dive Worldwide customers can enjoy six guided boat dives plus unlimited shore access to 60 sites on its lively house reef. Travel between November 16 and December 20 to save £200pp. Seven nights’ B&B then starts at £2,595pp, including flights, transfers and car hire (diveworldwide.com).Become a subscriber and, along with unlimited digital access to The Times and The Sunday Times, you can enjoy a collection of travel offers and competitions curated by our trusted travel partners, especially for Times+ membersSign up for our Times Travel newsletter and follow us on Instagram and X

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