Holidays may be the one area where Black Friday does deliver genuine savings of as much as £300 for a family.
New research from Which? found seven in 10 deals booked around the Black Friday sales event were cheaper than at other times.
The consumer champion recorded the prices of 140 holidays and flights on Black Friday 2023 from 14 different companies, before checking the prices again two weeks later (December), and once more in early January to see if the discounts held up over time.
The vast majority – 73 percent – were cheaper on Black Friday than after the event had passed.
Which? said that while the figures do not guarantee the same bargains will be available this year the results are encouraging for those hoping to snap up a bargain on Black Friday.
And they are in stark contrast to the claims made for Black Friday sales across many other areas of the high street, where claimed savings are not what they appear.
The study found the best chance of securing a holiday saving were with Tui and Jet2. Some 100 percent of Tui holiday deals it checked were cheaper on Black Friday compared to two weeks later and at the beginning of January, as were nine in 10 Jet2 holiday deals.
One of the best holiday savings Which? found was a discount of almost £300 on a Tui holiday to Tenerife.
The holiday for two people, departing in August, could be snapped up for just £1,768 (£884 pp) on Black Friday, but the price had risen to £2,045 (£1,023 pp) when Which? checked two weeks later, before dropping slightly to £1,889 (£950 pp) in early January.
Holidaymakers could also save over £200 on an all-inclusive Jet2 break to Fuerteventura. The August break for two people was just £1,704 (£852 pp) on Black Friday but rose to £1,938 (£969) two weeks later, before falling to £1,880 (£940 pp) in January.
For flight bookings, Black Friday was the best time to book a flight with British Airways, while 70 percent of Ryanair flights were cheapest then too.
A BA flight to Oslo was half price in the Black Friday sales compared to booking in January. The flight, departing from Heathrow in March, was just £69 to book on Black Friday, before rising to £104 two weeks later, and climbing again to £135 in January.
Ryanair flights for two from Stansted to Zagreb over Valentine’s Day (10th -17th Feb) were over £140 cheaper on Black Friday. The fare was just £181 (£91 pp) on Black Friday, before rising to £298 (£149pp) two weeks later, and rose again to £324 (£162 pp) in January.
It was a mixed bag with easyJet and Jet2 flights, and in each case approximately half the flights Which? checked were cheapest on Black Friday, and the other half cheapest in January.
Which? Travel Editor Rory Boland, said: “While last year’s data suggests holidaymakers had a fair chance of making a saving on Black Friday, don’t feel pressured to book in the sale this year.
“When it comes to travel it can be difficult to tell a deal from a dud – flight prices can fluctuate for all manner of reasons, as can holiday costs, and there’s no guarantee the savings we spotted last year will be repeated.
“What we do know from tracking thousands of holiday prices is that booking as far ahead as possible will generally beat booking last minute.
“Scammers are out in force this time of year, so if a deal looks too good to be true, think twice. Be particularly wary of deals advertised on social media, offers from unfamiliar companies, and accommodation listings urging payment by bank transfer.”
