Cheap Holiday Destinations to escape the EURO!!!

So where will it be for your October holidays?

Over the last year the value of the Euro has increased dramatically with you now getting about 122 Euros for £100.

This is making it more and more expensive to visit Europe, and pay for goods and services in the Euro Zone.

Now's the time to start thinking about alternative destinations:

Let us know of any good value countries you have visited by adding a comment.

Here's a few to get you thinking:

Budapest - Excellent hotels, coffee shops, and history with cheap flights!

Croatia - An attractive island-hopping option is the sun drenched Dalmatian coast of Croatia.

Although Dalmatia has been steadily gaining in popularity in recent years, it's still possible to take advantage of the pound-stretching Kuna and enjoy the warm peach architecture and the Italian influenced cuisine for less.
Istanbul is one of the world's best kept secrets.

How about Istanbul?

For sightseers the Hagia Sophia church, Blue Mosque and Topkapi Palace rival the Colloseum and the Pantheon in terms of impressiveness.

One of the best ways to get around is by ferry which costs less than a pound and offers panoramic views of the city to be enjoyed while sipping Turkish black tea onboard.

The modern part of town offers sophisticated nightlife and quality restaurants, where paying with Turkish Lira you'll struggle to spend the equivalent of a ten pounds for a meal.

Afterwards you might even want to even try smoking a hookah pipe like the locals do, commonly called 'hubbly-bubbly'.

Morocco

Morocco is about as far away from Europe as you can get for a 3 1/2 hour flight, and with charter flights flying direct to Marrakech prices are very competitive.

If Barcelona has Las Ramblas, Marrakech has Djemaa el Fna, the famous square where all manner of street performers entertain onlookers, which is surrounded by a maze of shopping markets - don't forget to haggle!

If the crowds get too much, retire to one of the city's lush riads or indulge in world class beauty treatments at a sliver of the cost in the UK.

Crave the beach? The coastal resort of Essaouira is only a day trip away.

Bulgaria rather than Nice!

The Cote D'Azur is renowned for ritzy glamour, but at a cost - get beachside opulence at a fraction of the price at Varna, known as the Bulgarian Riviera and the country's summer capital.

Millions of savvy sun seekers head to the region each year, where popular beachside resorts like Golden Sands and Sunny Beach provide exactly what their names suggest.

As a major shopping and nightlife hub take advantage of the Bulgarian Lev which will be phased out in favour of the Euro by 2010.

Another plus is not having to deal with notoriously prickly French service; however expect some culture clash as in Bulgaria a nod of the head means no and a shake means yes!

Finally Tunisia

Just a 3 hour flight from the UK, and with cheap package deals being widely available, its little wonder that Tunisia has become an increasingly popular holiday destination.

While it offers a taste of North African exoticism with desert landscapes and colourful markets in easy reach of Mediterranean beaches, it is also one of the more liberal Islamic countries and alcohol is widely available.

It's safe to expect hot weather all year round (high summer is perhaps too hot for some) and popular beach resorts offering water sports and reputable golf courses.

Visit Sky Travel at wwwtravel.sky.com for more information and also cheap deals.