Trading a bleak winter for a sun lounger is always a good idea, until you see the exchange rate. So, if you’re planning to swap grey skies for some winter sun this year, it’s worth knowing where your money will stretch the furthest.
Post Office Travel Money’s new Winter Sun Holiday Costs Barometer has compared prices across 24 destinations worldwide, tracking the cost of everyday holiday essentials, from a coffee and a beer to sun cream and a three-course dinner for two.
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The ranking works by pricing up a fixed ‘basket’ of eight typical holiday items in each destination: a filter coffee, a local beer, a Coke or Pepsi, a glass of wine, a bottle of mineral water, sun cream, insect repellent and a three-course evening meal for two with wine, all converted into sterling using September’s Post Office exchange rates. Destinations are then ranked from cheapest to most expensive based on the total cost of that basket, with prices sourced from national or regional tourist boards where possible, or independent research where they weren’t available.
The data is in and two budget-friendly African destinations have taken the crown for best cheap winter escape. Cape Town tops the list as the single best-value destination, with the barometer basket of eight items costing just over £58, a drop of 9.7 percent since March. The fall is largely down to weaker prices in South African rand, even though the pound has actually dipped slightly against the currency since the spring.
Close behind is Mombasa, Kenya, where prices have stayed steady at just under £64, with British holidaymakers now paying less thanks to a stronger pound against the Kenyan shilling.
Despite the weather being rather a lot chillier, Tokyo also features on the Winter Sun Holiday Costs Barometer, ranking third overall. It remains the most competitively priced destination surveyed in Asia, despite prices there climbing 7.7 percent to around £67. Phuket, Thailand, isn’t far behind in fifth place at just over £76, with prices up only 1.8 percent.
The Algarve, Costa del Sol and Tenerife are the cheapest of eight European resorts surveyed, all landing comfortably in the top ten. The Dominican Republic led the way on value in the Caribbean and Atlantic region, with prices in Punta Cana falling 11.1 percent to £90, some 38 percent cheaper than Tobago, the most expensive destination in the entire survey at £144. Prices fell in a third of all 24 destinations surveyed over the past six months, and rose by less than five percent in a further nine, meaning bargains are there to be found for anyone willing to shop around.
The best-value travel destinations for winter 2026
- Cape Town, South Africa – £58.24
- Mombasa, Kenya – £63.66
- Tokyo, Japan – £66.76
- Colombo, Sri Lanka – £74.79
- Phuket, Thailand – £76.39
- Algarve, Portugal – £82.35
- Costa del Sol, Spain – £83.58
- Tenerife, Canary Islands – £87.46
- Penang, Malaysia – £89.72
- Punta Cana, Dominican Republic – £89.79
- Lanzarote, Canary Islands – £93.82
- Sliema, Malta – £96.36
- Rhodes, Greece – £97.75
- Paphos, Cyprus – £98.02
- Orlando, USA – £106.14
- Montego Bay, Jamaica – £107.18
- Bridgetown, Barbados – £107.32
- St John’s, Antigua – £108.85
- Rodney Bay, Saint Lucia – £115.86
- Grand Baie, Mauritius – £118.93
- Cancún, Mexico – £128.32
- Funchal, Madeira – £129.63
- St George’s, Grenada – £133.68
- Scarborough, Tobago – £144.15
Want more travel inspiration? Lonely Planet has revealed the best places to travel in 2027, from Montserrat to Maryland.
And we know how you can get there, as these are the world’s best airlines for 2026.
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