Huge variations
There were also falls in three other euro currency destinations – Sliema in Malta (down 9% to £71.41); Nice on France’s Cote d’Azur (down 13.7% to £91.86); and Corfu in Greece (down 7.8% to £96.06).
The cheapest long-haul destination was Cape Town at £50.23, followed by Tokyo (£55.55), which dropped from second to sixth place overall due to a 29% year-on-year rise in prices.
The eight items were most expensive in the Seychelles (£182.89), ahead of Abu Dhabi (£168.66) and Dubai (£150.52). Both the Seychelles and Abu Dhabi were included in the report for the first time, alongside Delhi (£104.29).
Post Office Travel Money’s Andrew Brown said: “It’s good news prices are down in many destinations this year, but it’s still important to be aware of the huge variation in costs we found across the 42 countries surveyed.
“For example, barometer costs in the six cheapest resorts and cities are less than half those in the 15 priciest destinations. That’s why we advise holidaymakers make a destination shortlist and compare the prices of meals, drinks and other tourist items before booking.”
The destination to see the largest percentage drop was Singapore where the total price fell 21.5% to £120.66, although the city state still only ranks in 34th place overall.
There were also price falls of 19.6% in Rodney Bay, Saint Lucia (£80.09), which was the best-value Caribbean destination ahead of Antigua, Barbados, Jamaica and Tobago.
A 10.5% slump in the Brazilian real against the pound in the past 12 months also makes Rio de Janeiro better value with the basket of items now costing £111.19 in the city – a year-on-year fall of 19.5%.
But it’s not all good news for UK holidaymakers. The Italian town of Sorrento saw a more than 30% rise in prices to £119.03, while there was a similar increase in Porec, Croatia, with in-resort costs rising to £80.38.
Despite the continued weakness of the pound, Post Office Travel Money said there had been a 5% rise in the sale of euros to British tourists in the latter months of 2018, plus a jump in demand for other European currencies.
“Despite speculation rising prices would put UK holidaymakers off travelling to the continent, strong currency sales for the euro, Turkish lira, Bulgarian lev and Croatian kuna over the past year underline the fact Europe remains the destination of choice for most people,” added Brown.
