UAE travellers can save thousands of Dirhams by tweaking holiday plans, according to Skyscanner research.
Changing the day of travel, departure airport and even week of a planned holiday can lead to massive savings for flexible travellers, said the international travel expert.
UAE travellers are overwhelmingly planning international travel this summer, but around half have yet to make a booking, Skyscanner claims.
UAE travel tips
Skyscanner said 91 per cent of UAE travellers are planning to get away this summer, but nearly half (48 per cent) have yet to book their summer getaway.
Whilst almost all (91 per cent) of UAE travellers share that they feel confident that they know how to find the best holiday deals, Skyscanner data shows that only 4 per cent of UAE travellers are searching for trips during the cheapest week of summer.
Travel specialist Skyscanner searches more than 80bn prices every single day, and has collated data on the most popular routes from the UAE including the UK, India, Maldives and the Philippines.
Skyscanner has published travel hacks to find the best value travel.
Travel the last week of the school summer holidays (instead of the first) and save 10 per cent
Despite half of UAE travellers (50 per cent) saying that they know that there are cheaper weeks of the summer holidays to travel, Skyscanner can reveal that only 4 per cent of UAE searches are for the cheapest of the summer/school holidays.
According to Skyscanner data, the first two weeks of the school holidays are by far the most popular weeks to head away this summer, however, this is in fact the most expensive time to travel.
Skyscanner’s data shows that on average travellers can save 10 per cent by travelling the week of August 19 versus start of July, meaning an average saving of AED760 for a family of four.
Want to save big this summer? Travel on a Friday
Travellers who are flexible and can fly on less popular days of the week can save up to 35 per cent on the cost of their flights this July and August, according to Skyscanner data.
Travellers on these dates are also likely to experience a less busy airport.
90 per cent of UAE travellers said they would be willing to change the day and/or week of their summer holidays to save this year. For instance, flying to Türkiye on a Friday, instead of a Saturday, means a family of four can save up AED669 on average for their return travel this July and August.
UAE residents can save money by switching their departure airport
Flight prices from UAE airports airport’s will vary in price for destinations depending on a number of factors such as which airlines are based there and which routes they serve, meaning some will be busier than others at peak times.
Skyscanner says being flexible on airport departures can lead to reduced prices.
According to website data a family of four can save AED13,828 on a trip to Italy when departing from Abu Dhabi instead of Dubai. Skyscanner said return flights to Rome during the month of August from Abu Dhabi are available for AED586 per person versus AED4,043 from Dubai.
Skyscanner travel expert Ayoub El Mamoun said: “Our research shows that over half of UAE travellers (58%) make sacrifices, including spending fewer meals out, takeaway coffees and new clothes, in order to save for their summer holidays, but are less likely to shop around for holidays in the way they would when doing their weekly shop or clothes”.
Skyscanner analysed tens of thousands of booking data points over the past 12 months, drawn from 10 origin countries to their top 30 destinations, looking at metrics such as average seat price, cheapest week of the summer holiday to travel, best and worst days to travel and the associated cost and the best time to book. The data used includes:
- Average monthly seat price
- Cheapest week of the summer (July and August) to travel
- Best time to book
- Best time to book saving (average price minus best time to book price)
- Cheapest day of the week to travel
- Cheapest day of week saving (most expensive – cheapest day)
- Cheapest destinations
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