100 best travel deals to save on your next holiday

This travel expert knows her way around a good deal, and these are her top picks to save you money right now.

Words by Mercedes Maguire at escape.com.au

This article first appeared on escape.com.au, and may contain links from their affiliate and advertising partners. When you click on them, or share this content, they may earn a commission. Learn more

It’s crowded and noisy and some tables are a little splattered. But it’s in the market of Lau Pa Sat that I have one of the best meals on a trip to Singapore, and one of the cheapest. A delicious plate of Hainanese chicken rice comes in at just $6 – or $8 if you add the beer I had.

One of the benefits of being Escape’s deals editor of more than 12 years is that I don’t travel without sussing out a good bargain. And neither should you.

So, we’ve done all the hard work for you and found the 100 best bargains in travel right now.

ACCOMMODATION

Heading to California? Get four nights for the price of three at The Fairmont Miramar Hotel & Bungalows Santa Monica and up to $750 hotel credit.
Save 30 per cent and get free breakfast on seven-night stays at Hokkaido’s Nozo Hotel Furano.
Choose Tahiti’s Moorea over Bora Bora and save up to $2000 on an Overwater Bungalow at Hilton Moorea Lagoon Resort & Spa.
Travel to Samoa in the low season and get two free nights at the Saletoga Sands Resort & Spa.
“All-inclusive stays at Club Med are budget winners,” says Escape contributor Kirrily Schwarz. “The value is fantastic, because once you’re there, you won’t need your wallet at all.”
Get free breakfast for two when you stay at The Sebel Brisbane Margate Beach.
Stay four nights, pay three at Big4 Port Willunga Tourist Park, South Australia.
Get a free three-night Cape Town extension on select Botswana, South Africa or Zimbabwe trips with Safari Guru.

Nab a free night at Discovery Parks Cradle Mountain when you book three nights.
Stay three nights, pay for two at Sal Salis Ningaloo Reef, in Western Australia.
Affordable YHA Australia stays are now cheaper with 20 per cent off three-night bookings.
Buffet breakfast is free at the sparkling new Novotel and Ibis Styles Melbourne Airport during August.
Dive for free with three-night-plus stays at Holiday Inn Resort Kandooma Maldives.
Budget easier with all-inclusive stays at Blue Lagoon Resort Fiji.
Breakfast daily is included for guests at Hilton Fiji Beach Resort on Denarau Island.
Hawaii holidaymakers, check out Waikiki Beach Stays and download a free map for resort details – including which ones to choose to avoid Waikiki resort fees of up to $US51 a day.
Packages with bonus inclusions are great value, like My Queensland’s Daydream Island escape with $2300 in extras.
Get all meals daily and other bonuses on a five-night Fiji escape at The Warwick.
Stay three nights, pay two at Chaweng Regent Beach Resort Koh Samui.
A couples’ escape at Anantara Uluwatu Bali Resort is down 20 per cent.
Double-Six Luxury Hotel Seminyak has half-price stays with Escape Deals.
See a different, and more affordable, side of Paris, with a camping holiday.
Escape head of travel Kerrie McCallum thinks she may just have found one of the cheapest beachfront havens – La Playa in Sri Lanka’s Hiriketiya. “It’s literally beachfront, the surf and sand right at your door. The rooms are large with balconies and good-size bathrooms, all for around $250 a night.”
Stay outside the Disneyland resort to save: a night at Disneyland Hotel is about $900 compared to around $300 at Best Western Plus Stovall’s Inn, according to Booking.com.
Check in at a convent or monastery in Italy to save – properties close to the Vatican are about €50 a night.
Kimpton Margot Sydney has a package including dinner, accommodation and tickets to Sister Act the Musical from $400 for two.
Book a half-price stay at The Reef House Adult’s Retreat Palm Cove through Luxury Escapes.
Book a last-minute Uluru stay at Ayers Rock Resort from $225 a night until August 30.
Enjoy the French cuisine of Bisou Bisou restaurant with a Hotel X Brisbane dine-and-stay package that includes a three- course dinner and breakfast.

FAMILY

One child goes free with a family pass on a Whale Watching Adventure with Brisbane Whale Watching.
Kids enter free in August at White Ridge Farm, Caboolture in Queensland.
Free breakfast comes with the family package at InterContinental Sydney Double Bay.
Get $70 off a family whale watching trip on the Sunshine Coast with Sunreef.
Up to four kids enter free per adult every Friday at Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands’ ArtScience Museum.
Kids up to 11 years old eat free at Plantation Island Resort in Fiji.
Visit four wildlife parks at Mandai Wildlife Reserve Singapore for the price of two.
Crown Plaza Hawkesbury Valley has an Ultimate Family Getaway package.
Kids 12 and younger eat free at Outrigger Fiji Beach Resort.
Mumpacktravel.com founder Evie Farrell likes to “rent the lifestyle” in northern Thailand by staying at budget accommodation, but paying a day rate of $19 to enjoy facilities at Shangri-la Chiang Mai.

FOOD

For the best ramen in Tokyo, Qantas’s international customer service manager Travys Carinci heads to Oreryu Shio-Ramen in Shibuya where a bowl is 700-1500 Yen, or $7-$16.
Travys also recommends eating for under $2 at Tokyo’s Family Mart, where the famous Famichiki fried chicken is 200 yen.
In Tahiti, sample authentic Tahitian food at food trucks, or roulottes, around Papeete’s marina.
Weekday lunch specials at Sydney’s The Royal Hotel Paddington can be had for $15.
Say cheers to the best happy hour locations in Melbourne.
In Tokyo, Escape contributor Andrea Black found Haneda Airport’s best-value meal: “Fresh ebi, tuna sashimi and a frosty Asahi beer at Tsukiji Sushiko Takumi for $16.”
Get up to 25 per cent off dining at Asia Pacific Hilton Hotels by joining the Hilton Honors loyalty program.
Try Michelin-star food at street food prices at Jay Fai’s at Phra Nakhon, Bangkok.
Follow @meetyouat_ on Instagram for a curated list of NYC’s best happy hour deals.
Six-dollar prawns is just one of the affordable dishes on offer at Phuong’s Beach Restaurant in Vietnam’s An Bang Beach, says mumpacktravel.com’s Evie Farrell.

TOURS

Walk and cycle around Italy, France, Portugal and Spain for less with UTracks, which has locked in its 2025 tours at 2024 prices.
Book last-minute (within two months of travel) to save 30 per cent on a nine-day tour of Zambia with Timbuktu Travel in October 2024.
Camino departures for 2025 are currently price-locked at 2024 prices at UTracks.
Bundle and save, says Inspiring Vacations’ Brendon Cooper – a 17-day Scandinavian package, including flights, is down 31 per cent.
Package together Gems of the South West tour with an Indian Pacific rail journey and get free economy flights up to $700 per person through Outback Spirit.
Grab a two-for-one deal to Japan from $4999, flights included, with TripADeal.
Explore Eastern Europe over 19 days from October 13, 2024 and save $1200 with Bunnik Tours.

FLIGHTS

Pay for one economy airfare to Hong Kong and only taxes for the second person with Cathay Pacific.
Present your Emirates boarding pass for hotel and attraction discounts in Dubai.
Students save 10 per cent on Emirates economy flights and five per cent on business class.
Fly Business Class to Tahiti on Air Tahiti Nui from $2326.

SOLOS

Get a rare solo resort discount and bonuses with seven-night stay at Diamond Cliff Resort & Spa SHA Plus in Phuket, Thailand.
Solos pay no single supplement on select Paul Gauguin cruises into 2026.
There is zero supplement for solos staying at any andBeyond Africa and South America property.
Solos save 50 per cent on a seven- night stay at the Jayakarta Bali through Flight Centre.

ATTRACTIONS

Save $130 diving with sharks at Sea Life Sydney Aquarium.
In Singapore, Monster Day Tours offers free 2.5-hour daily walking tours.
A Merlin Annual Pass offers savings at 10 Australian attractions.
Entry to four parks, museums and gardens are discounted with a South Florida Adventure Pass.
Free museums to visit in LA include the Getty Villa and the Griffith Observatory.
London’s free museums and galleries include the British Museum and Tate Modern.
See discounted shows in London when you buy tickets on the day through TKTS London.
Save up to 50 per cent on last-minute shows in Paris through the theatre kiosks.
Limited-viewing seats at the Paris Opera are sold on the day of the show at Palais Garnier for €10.
Take a free walking tour in London with Strawberry Tours. Themes include street art and Harry Potter.
Pay $US146 ($225) for a City Pass and save 40 per cent at five top New York attractions.
Save up to 50 per cent at top attractions with a GoCity Pass, including London, Paris, Dubai and Rome.

CRUISES

Booklovers, take 25 per cent off Cunard’s 2024 Australian Literature Festival at Sea, December 11-16.
Book an all-inclusive 26-day Northwest Passage cruise with HX and save $6100.
Unlike most cruises, there’s no charge to enter the enormous Scandinavian-style thermal suite on Viking’s ocean ships, says Escape contributor Andrea Black. “You can spend a full day exploring the different hot and cold rooms in the LivNordic Spa.”
Save $2000 on a Danube cruise with business class airfares through My Travel Experience.
NCL has extended its Asian season, from next month to March 2026. Save up to $2500 off an Asian cruise.
Book before December 31, 2024 and get 15 per cent off 2026 Austral Islands voyages with Aranui Cruises.

GEAR

Get all the gear you need for an outdoor adventure by splashing out on Kathmandu’s clearance sale.
Spend $199 on luggage and save 30 per cent or spend $399 and save 40 per cent at Strand. Get packing!
Rug up for less with a Cape Women’s Eco Lite puffer jacket down to $69.99 from $149.99.

SKI

Escape contributor Kirrily Schwarz says Epic and Ikon passes are game- changers for snow enthusiasts. “If you ski five days or more, it will pay itself off, compared with buying daily lift tickets.”
Save on transporting bulky ski gear by hiring with My Epic Gear app. Membership is from $US50 for the 2024-25 season.
Bundle a beginner 2.5-hour adult lesson with a one-day lift pass at Falls Creek from $169.
Stay three nights, but pay for only two at Riverside Cabins during spring at Thredbo.
Thredbo ski passes are slashed by 50 per cent for kids and 30 per cent for adults from September 9 to October 7.

CAR / CAMPER

Relocating a camper with Imoova can reduce your rental fee to $1 a day (plus fees), says Escape contributor Catherine Best.
Another tip from Catherine is to pitch or unhitch at low-cost campgrounds hugging WA’s Ningaloo coast from $10 per person a night.
Choose an eco-friendly – and wallet-friendly – option by hiring an EV and save 20 per cent with Hertz.
Hire an Avis car for four or more days and get the fourth day free. Book by September 30 for travel until December 18, 2024.

PLANNING

Get 15 per cent off at Travel Insurance Direct until October 31, 2024. Use promo code TID15.
Find the cheapest time to travel with the Savings Generator at Skyscanner.
Luxury Escapes’ new LuxPlus+ loyalty program unlocks savings and exclusive access to deals.
Don’t over-tip with the free Tip Check calculator app.
Thailand’s Krabi has been named one of the most affordable destinations, with overnight rates from $53 according to Expedia.
Fast Cover is Australia’s best-value travel insurance according to Finder.com.au.