More for your baht: Thailand tops holiday value survey

THOSE seeking the best value while on holiday this year should head for Thailand and avoid Europe and Australia at all costs, according to a survey.

Sat, 19 Apr, 2008 - 01:00

Research firm Mintel has found day-to-day holiday expenses in the south-east Asian favourite of backpackers and culture-worshippers were a third of those in Oz.

In Thailand, researchers found a three-course meal for two with wine came to €28.20 in the local currency compared with €75.88 in an Australian restaurant.

A bottle of beer in a Thai pub was €2 compared with €3.16 in an outback bar while the obligatory postcard from Bangkok was 44c versus €1.60 from Sydney.

Mintel looked at the prices of 10 holiday staples including coffee, suncream and bottles of water in 16 popular destinations worldwide.

Best value on long-haul destinations was Thailand where all 10 items came to €36.03, then South Africa (€50.47) and Egypt (€59.21).

“Very often people just concentrate on getting to the sun and sea but they’re not too conscious of the cost of food, entertainment or eating out,” said Consumers’ Association of Ireland chief executive Dermott Jewell.

“The exchange rate is something else holidaymakers need to bear in mind as it can have a significant impact on the cost of their holiday.”

Thanks to the slide of the dollar and pound sterling against the euro, holidaymakers can get more for their money in the US and Britain.

In the Mintel survey, which excluded Britain, the US was good value, with the 10 holiday staples coming to €74 — cheaper than much of Europe.

Yet good value could still be had on the Continent: the cheapest EU destination was Bulgaria, where holidaymakers needed €62.97 for the basics.

In the eurozone, Spain was the best-value destination, with a price of €74.69 for the same goods.

In Oz, the 10 staples came to €112.17, about €15 ahead of Canada and €20 more than Italy.

Of the 16 destinations, Greece was the 7th most expensive and France was the 5th costliest, with the 10 purchases coming to €81.31 and €86.96 respectively.

Figures show the Irish have a bumper appetite for foreign travel, and last year spent €6.2 billion on 7.7 million overseas trips.

The Central Statistics Office shows overseas trips by Irish residents increased by 11% to 547,600 in February alone.

How much for suncream?

Thailand ...................................................

Cup of coffee: 1.12

Pub bottle or can of minerals: 90 cents

Suncream (factor 15): 3.36

Postcard and stamp home: 44c

Meal for two with wine: 22.38

Total: 28.20

USA ..........................................................

Cup of coffee: 2.03