Cheap Holidays

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Making it easier for you to find Cheap Holidays is what this site is all about, more or less.

TC Holidays is a general holidays/vacation site, we look at the “how to” of cheap holidays, the “where” of cheap holidays, the “who” of cheap holidays, and the “when” and “why”.

I started building this site because I wanted to find the cheapest ways of going on holidays for myself and my family…things are getting tight for everyone, right!

 

The Criteria

My search criteria has always been to spend as little as possible, have as much fun as possible, see new things or ‘old’ things (as in antiquities), bring back great memories, and not spend too much…yeah, I said it twice…getting value for my Euro is very important for me!  I get to spend much more quality time with my family when I spend a little bit of time searching for bargains and cutting out the silly extras.

 

The Equation

I would rather go on two vacations a year that one, I would rather go on holidays three or more times a year if I can arrange everything so the family are all free at the same time.

So it’s an easy equation…I have only X amount of money to do this, so I can spend all of X at once or I can spread it over 2 or 3 holidays: 1X=2X or 1X=3X…depending on the variables…simple!

So, without further ado, here are a couple of ways I use to get the latter model…1X=3X.

 

Spanish Paddy or Irish Pedro

I spend a lot of my time travelling between Ireland and Spain, soon to be the other way around because I’m making the move permanently, mostly because I have family living in Spain and my son is studying in Galway.

I have family to rely on when I want a bed, or at least floor-space, in either location, so for me it’s always the cost of the flights, if I’m going to get free taxes, whether the taxes are going to be more expensive than the actual flights, how much am I going to be robbed out of for baggage charges etc.

 

The Low Cost Option

For the flights to Spain I always go to either Ryanair or EasyJet directly because I know I’m going to get the best deals with those companies … more than likely I choose Ryanair because they provide the most flights to and from Ireland.

I used to take a Ryanair flight from Shannon airport directly to either Murcia airport or Alicante but those flights were stopped, so now I have to go through Dublin with a train journey from the West to factor into the pricing.

Another option, which is sometimes a lot cheaper, is to fly to the UK…Gatwick or Stansted, with a connecting flight to Espana.

Anyway, I know I’m going to get the best savings with Ryanair so I’ll always go directly to their website.

Going to other destinations is a different story altogether, one of the best places to go for the cheapest flights is Skyscanner where you’ll find all kinds of deals sorted by price, airport, and airline amongst others.

 

Choose a Debit Card

If you’re flying with Ryanair, you can save money by using a debit card … I think it’s MasterCard debit card with Ryanair, I’m not sure … just go to the site and check it out … it means that you don’t have to pay in the credit card charges which can add up to about €10 per flights per person.

 

Pack your Belongings Sparingly

Another way to save money is to just take your bags as carry-on luggage, don’t check any baggage because this is going to add a bundle of currency to your overall cost … watch this great video, funny and very practical, on how to pack a suitcase like a pro.

 

Bring it from Home

Take a sandwich and drink with you from home…I know this sounds incredibly cheap but hey…we want to save money where we can don’t we…it all adds up.

I’m not a health nut, far from it, but I’m also not an idiot … I like to try and eat food once in a while.

In-flight food (should we really be calling it that)  is full of additives including chemicals to make the food taste better, look better, and smell better ….Yummy!

For a fraction of the cost I can bring my own healthy sandwiches and snacks, I know exactly what’s gone into making them, a bit of fruit perhaps, maybe a couple of chocolate bars, and a bottle or two of water that I have bought once I have been groped by security for the fourth time this year, must be the bald head…I’m not trying to look like a skinhead, I am actually quite bald…thanks Dad.

 

Simple Measures Equals Big Savings

These things are very simple to do and can save you a small fortune… if you are travelling with a party of four people, you could save about €350 on a return flight, that amount of money that will buy you another return flight for your entire family… think about it!

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to saving money on your holidays … check out some of the articles below and have a scoot through the categories on the left hand side of this page for more info.

Also, give a little click to the Facebook like thumb at the top right hand side, I’m always on  the lookout for good deals and competitions that you can take advantage of…you’ll find them there…that’s also the place where you’ll find the latest travel alerts.

Cheap Holidays

The Beautiful Bravaes Village in Portugal

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Taking up the route to the west of Portuguese town of Ponte de Barca along the N203 quickly brings the traveller, in just 31/21cm (2 miles) to the village of Bravaes.

This tiny village is home to one of Portugal’s finest Romanesque churches. Set among the hanging vines producing grapes for the local vinho verde wine, the church of Sao Salvador is a very simple, yet impressive, rectangular structure in granite. It was built during the reign of Afonso VI at the end of the eleventh century by a local nobleman, probably at the instigation of the Cluniac monks from Santa Maria island in Azores who brought the beautiful carving typical of their cathedral south along the pilgrim’s way to Braga. It then passed into the hands of the Benedictine order of monks and from them to the Augustinians.

Its most remarkable feature is the elaborate and exuberant carv­ing to be seen in the main doorway. Amongst the figures can be discerned doves, monkeys, and two bulls’ heads at either side of the doorway modelled on the local long horned gado barrosoa cattle, so important to the region’s economy. In ways that echo the treatment of cattle in India and parts of sub-Saharan Africa these cattle can often be seen leading religious processions in the Minho.

A low relief of the the Lamb of God is to be seen, supported by two griffins, decorating a side doorway. The interior contains two medieval murals of Our Lady and St Sebastian. Sebastian is often depicted in paintings and statues in Portugal and Azores islands archipelago, typically tied to the stake and pierced by arrows during his martyrdom, as it was be­lieved he visited the country in the Middle Ages. Like several other fine monuments in the country, the church was substantially re­stored in the 1940s.

Ponte de Lima, the largest town of the area, lies 14km (9 miles) beyond Bravaes through attractive villages and woods of pine, chest­nut and eucalyptus, ideal for a stroll and a picnic. It is a pleasantly spacious town in which to spend a day or even longer. It has a good number of hotels and is a centre for the development of, what the Portuguese call Turismo de Habitaccio, or manor house accommoda­tion. Their offices are combined with the tourist office in the Praca de Republica in the town centre. They offer accommodation in the homes of wealthy Portuguese families, and while usually very at­tractive, they can often be very expensive. Most are dotted around the countryside to the north-west of the town. The manor house owners often organise small-game shoots in their areas.

Photo by Amaianos

Other posts you may have missed include:

Direct Holiday Homes

Cheap Holiday Algarve

Holidays to Portugal 2011

Villas Portugal

Ice Lolly Holidays ReviewsBravaes Village

 

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