Laurence Dollimore
IT’S official. The Costa del Sol is the cheapest holiday destination in Europe.
A major study found a jolly on Spain’s southern coast was less than half the price of rival hotspot Ibiza and even outpriced notoriously cheap Sunny Beach in Bulgaria.
The UK’s Post Office Travel Supermarket study compared the price of 10 items in 15 holiday destinations which are a favourite with Brits, including the Costa Blanca, Mallorca, Portugal’s Algarve and Greece’s Crete.
The sum total of the items, which included ice cream, sun-lounger rental and a banana boat ride, reached just €86.20 on the Costa del Sol.
It was followed by Sunny Beach on £89.93 and the Costa Blanca on €106.21.
Mallorca’s Palma Nova and Ibiza helped round off the list with €141.49 and €197.30 respectively.
The study showed a huge difference in food costs, with a three-course evening meal on the Andalucian coast costing just €45.31, compared to €125.01 in Ibiza and €86.72 in Mallorca.
The most expensive destination was Italy’s Sorrento, where a three-course evening meal would set you back €148.44.
Prices across the board have increased by 9.8% on the Costa del Sol and Costa Blanca, and by a whopping 23.6% and 25.6% on Mallorca and Ibiza respectively.
Meanwhile, second-placed Sunny Beach in Bulgaria only saw a price increase of 2.6% on last year.
