Posted on Friday, 8 March 2019

Britons are being offered huge discounts on package holidays for this summer, prompted by fears over Brexit-related travel disruption.

Worries over delays at airports and seaports, along with currency fluctuations have led to many Britons postponing holiday plans.

The UK is set to leave the European Union on March 29, but the Withdrawal Agreement has yet to be agreed by parliament, leaving the possibility of a 'no-deal' Brexit.                

Package holidays to popular destinations such as Spain, Italy and Portugal have seen prices fall dramatically compared to last year.

Holiday deals in Tunisia have fallen by up to 42 per cent, year-on-year, according to data from Travel Supermarket which was published by This is Money.

Up to 33 per cent has been cut from holidays on Fuertaventura, one of the three main Canary Islands.

For families with children of school age, the best prices are said to be towards the end of the summer holidays.

Travel firms, airlines and hotels are competing hard for British tourists, who are wary of making overseas trips until Brexit is resolved.

Among Britons who have made travel plans, the eastern Mediterranean has become popular once again, with resorts in Turkey and Egypt competing with those in the western Med.

Notably, package holiday prices in Turkey and Egypt have not fallen as dramatically as in Spain or Portugal, chiefly because demand is relatively strong - particularly among UK holidaymakers.

Passport worries

While travel delays and currency fluctuations are key worries for Britons, so too are potential new requirements relating to passports.

In the event that the no agreement is reached by the government and the EU, after 29 March your passport must have:

• At least six months remaining validity - whether adult of child passports.
• Additional months added to a new passport may not count towards those minimum six months. For example, if you obtained a new 10 year passport but you had four months left on your old passport, those four months would have been added to the document's validity (up to a maximum of nine months).

These rules, which relate to all passports issued by the UK, Gibraltar, Guernsey, the Isle of Man and Jersey, do not apply when travelling to Ireland.

If your passport fails to meet these criteria you would be well advised to apply for a new one.

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