Cape Town leads the field in Long Haul Holiday Report

• Cape Town overtakes Bali to top Long Haul Holiday Report best value resort chart for the first time (www.postoffice.co.uk/longhaul)
• Tokyo remains third cheapest but closes the gap on Cape Town and Bali
• Local price cuts in 40 cent of resorts cushions the impact of the weaker pound
• Mexico and Peru lead Latin-American charge as Cancun and Lima hit top 10

After three years at the top of the best value rankings, price rises in Bali mean the Far Eastern favourite has been overtaken by Cape Town, which emerges as the cheapest of 34 resorts and cities surveyed for the annual Long Haul Holiday Report by Post Office Travel Money¹, the UK’s leading foreign exchange provider, accounting for 1-in-4 currency transactions.

Using prices researched by long haul tailor-made holiday specialist Travelbag, Cape Town proved the clear winner in the ninth Post Office survey.At £48.89 for a ‘basket’ of 10 tourist items, including meals and drinks, the South African city was significantly cheaper than runner-up Bali (£62.56), where the cost of eating out has mushroomed by over 50 per cent in the past 12 months.As a result, tourist prices are now 28 per cent higher than in Cape Town.

But while local price rises of 30 per cent in Bali will compound the impact of the weak pound on holiday wallets, competition between shops, restaurants and bars in Tokyo has reduced local prices in that city and cushioned the effect of a 24 per cent surge in the yen’s value against sterling.At £63.87, Tokyo remains third cheapest in the value chart but an eight per cent fall in local prices means the Japanese capital is now challenging Bali for second place.

Although tourist costs are up by an average of 25 per cent across all destinations once the sterling exchange rate has been factored in, Tokyo is among the 40 per cent of resorts and cities surveyed by Travelbag researchers where local prices have fallen below 2015 levels to cushion the negative impact of the falling pound².

These include Orlando, where a marginal fall of one per cent in shops and restaurants means that prices are 12 per cent higher than a year ago after the exchange rate is applied - half the overall average rise across the destinations surveyed. At £79.76 for the 10 items, Orlando has entered the best value top ten in ninth place, its’ highest ranking in three years.Washington DC (£142.22) was most expensive of six US destinations surveyed – 78 per cent higher than Orlando.

Cancun (£74.26) is up to sixth place in the Post Office chart of best value long haul resorts on the back of a relatively weak Mexican peso, just behind Kenya’s Mombasa coastline (£69.41, 4^th) and Colombo, Sri Lanka (£70.61, 5^th), and ahead of Phuket, Thailand (£75.72, 7^th).Mexico’s most popular resort has led a Latin-American charge in which Lima, Peru (£78.52), a new introduction to the 2016 survey, has entered the top 10 in eighth place, while Tamarindo (£87.03) in Costa Rica was 12^th placed in the Post Office barometer of tourist costs.

Along with South Africa, Peru and Costa Rica were among 10 2016 hotlist predictions made by Post Office Travel Money in its annual Holiday Money Report in January³.Since then, sales of the Costa Rican colon have risen by 46 per cent to make it this year’s second fastest growing currency. Peruvian nuevo sol sales have also grown 19 per cent year-on-year.In both cases the introduction of direct flights from the UK is likely to have boosted demand and news that resort prices offer good value should help to attract more UK holidaymakers.

All three Latin-American destinations eclipsed the six Caribbean resort areas surveyed for the report.Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic was cheapest in 15^th place with a cost of £91.24 for the 10 tourist staples.St Lucia, Jamaica, Barbados and Antigua were far more expensive.At £157.60, English Harbour in Antigua was 73 per cent pricier than Punta Cana.

Grand Baie, Mauritius (£83.70) made the Post Office top 10 for the third consecutive year –proof that the island’s claim to offer ‘affordable luxury’ is well placed.Prices in Grand Baie are down 16 per cent on the costs that UK holidaymakers would have faced five years ago.

Echoing last year’s results, Jumeirah Beach, Dubai was the most expensive destination surveyed at £199.34 – over four times the price for the same tourist items in Cape Town.

Andrew Brown of Post Office Travel Money said: “Costs may be higher in long haul holiday resorts this year for UK travellers but the good news is that local price cuts in many of the most popular ones will help to lessen the impact of the weaker pound.More than ever before, it will pay dividends to do some holiday homework before booking to find out where meals and drinks are cheapest.This can make a big difference to the overall cost of a holiday.”

Intelligence from Travelbag provides evidence that a combination of good value packages and affordable prices for local tourist goods once holidaymakers arrive in their destination is driving holiday bookings.The specialist operator cites South Africa, Bali, Phuket and Mexico as destinations that are growing in popularity for this reason.

Oliver Lomas – Head of Product & Commercial, Travelbag said: “Whilst eager to get the best deal when booking their holiday, our customers are keen to travel to destinations where they can make the most of their spending money when they arrive. We have seen an increase in bookings to destinations like Thailand and Mexico where rates for local tourist goods have stayed low. Over the last 12 months, holidays to Bali and Phuket have seen a steady increase, with bookings up 39 and 28 per cent respectively year on year.”

Travelbag is currently offering holiday packages to Bali from £649pp, Phuket from £459pp, Mexico from £789pp and South Africa from £649pp⁴.

A wide range of currencies can be ordered at over 1,600 Post Office branches nationwide for next day collection while many long haul currencies are available immediately at over 1,600 larger Post Office branches. Currency can also be ordered online at postoffice.co.uk for same day collection at selected branches, for next day collection at any branch or home delivery. Holidaymakers can also carry cash on the Post Office Travel Money Card, a chip and PIN-enabled MasterCard accepted in over 28 million locations worldwide.The card is available in five long haul currencies: US dollars, Australian dollars, Canadian dollars, New Zealand dollars and South African rand.

ENDS

For more information, please contact:

Gabrielle O’Gara Post Office Press Office 0207 250 2534 / 07718 977702

Gabrielle.ogara@postoffice.co.uk

Notes to Editors:

Details of prices and resorts surveyed can be found in the barometer tables in the accompanying document.

¹ The Post Office Long Haul Report barometer table is compiled from a combination of data supplied by the long haul specialist Travelbag cross-referenced with prices provided by national or regional tourist offices of participating countries except five of the six US destinations (excluding Orlando), which were supplied by Brand USA. Resorts featured are chosen as representative of the prices that UK holidaymakers will generally find in the country/destination.Random online checks were made to authenticate these prices. Exchange rates used are Post Office internet rates for exchange of £500-£999 on 8 September 2016.

² Local prices have dropped in 13 of 31 resorts or cities previously surveyed by Post Office Travel Money.These were: Antigua, Australia, Barbados, China, Dominican Republic, Japan, Singapore, Miami, New York City, Orlando, San Francisco, Austin and Vietnam.

³ Post Office Holiday Money Report January 2016 named the following 10 destinations in its hotlist for 2016: Australia, Budapest, Costa Rica, Iceland, Japan, Peru, Portugal, South Africa, Spanish Mainland and Vietnam.Selections were made based on a range of factors including increased accessibility, low prices, increased currency sales and an upward trend in package bookings over the previous 12 months.

⁴ Travelbag (0207 001 4112) is offering packages to top 10 destinations as follows:

• Bali: 8 nights from £649pp including flights and bed & breakfast accommodation at the 4* Inna Grand Bali Beach (selected Sep 2016 – Jun 2017 departures)
• Phuket: 8 nights from £459pp including flights and bed & breakfast accommodation at the 4* Chanalai Hillside Resort (selected Sep 2016 – Jun 2017 departures)
• Mexico: 7 nights from £789pp including flights and all inclusive accommodation at the 4* Occidental Allegro Cozumel (selected Sep 2016 – Jun 2017 departures)
• South Africa: South Africa: 5 nights from £649pp including flights and self-catering accommodation at the 4* Mouille Point Village Cape Town