Braving the rain to soak up the sun bargains

HUDDLED underneath a rain-hammered piece of plastic outside Budget Travel in Dublin last night, a hardy group of people are dreaming of blue skies.

It might have been wet but, according to Val O’Neill, from Pimblico, Dublin, who has queued for a free holiday outside the travel agent’s outlet in Baggot Street for each of the past four years, the cold is much worse.

“It’s always worth the effort because at the end of the day I end up with a family holiday that I could never afford anyway,” she said.