{"id":44821,"date":"2018-12-07T00:00:18","date_gmt":"2018-12-06T14:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/vc\/blog\/?p=44821"},"modified":"2018-12-06T09:36:41","modified_gmt":"2018-12-05T23:36:41","slug":"cheap-xmas-destinations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/vc\/blog\/cheap-xmas-destinations\/","title":{"rendered":"BARGAIN ALERT! Where to save on Xmas getaways"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Watch your step, \u2018cause I\u2019m about to spill some serious money-saving beans. Most people think travelling over Xmas is crazy expensive \u2013 that if you haven\u2019t locked it in six months in advance, you may as well forget it. But that\u2019s only because they don\u2019t know the secret to summer-travelling like a pro. Not only can you score an Xmas holiday bargain at the last minute BUT you can even pay less than if you\u2019d booked ahead \u2013 if you know where to go. Here are ten of the best\u00a0destinations for last-minute Christmas and New Year deals.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 10px;\"><strong>1. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/Phuket.d6046393.Destination-Travel-Guides?brandcid=LASTMINUTE-au.display.BLOG.DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG.generic&amp;utm_source=BLOG&amp;utm_medium=display&amp;utm_content=all&amp;utm_campaign=DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG\" target=\"_blank\">Phuket, Thailand<\/a><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>A dream summer holiday in gorgeous Phuket? Yes, please! Book a Christmas\/New Year getaway and you could save up to 50% on your accommodation compared to if you\u2019d booked in July&#8230;for real!<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 1058px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/a.travel-assets.com\/travel-assets-manager\/d357df30-35e9-4c35-a3a1-c79d650d8235\/anz-17728-1048px-1.jpg\" width=\"1048\" height=\"721\" \/><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Promthep Cape, looking amazing. Phuket, Thailand.<\/p><\/div>\n<h3 style=\"margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 10px;\"><strong>2. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/Surfers-Paradise.d9849.Destination-Travel-Guides?brandcid=LASTMINUTE-au.display.BLOG.DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG.generic&amp;utm_source=BLOG&amp;utm_medium=display&amp;utm_content=all&amp;utm_campaign=DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG\" target=\"_blank\">Surfers Paradise, QLD <\/a><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Awesome theme parks, easy access to the stunning Gold Coast Hinterland, and 70km of amazing beaches. A Gold Coast getaway is super fun any time of year. But if you book your summer GC break in December, instead of in July, you could save more than 10% on your stay.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 10px;\"><strong>3. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/Rotorua.d6048125.Destination-Travel-Guides?brandcid=LASTMINUTE-au.display.BLOG.DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG.generic&amp;utm_source=BLOG&amp;utm_medium=display&amp;utm_content=all&amp;utm_campaign=DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG\" target=\"_blank\">Rotorua, New Zealand <\/a><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Rotorua\u2019s incredible geothermal wonders, stunning scenery and rich M\u0101ori culture make it an absolute must-visit. Book a last-minute Xmas trip and you could save up to 25% on your stay.<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 1058px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/a.travel-assets.com\/travel-assets-manager\/d357df30-35e9-4c35-a3a1-c79d650d8235\/anz-17728-1048px-2.jpg\" width=\"1048\" height=\"704\" \/><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Um, WOW! A giant redwood tree in Rotorua, NZ.<\/p><\/div>\n<h3 style=\"margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 10px;\"><strong>4. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/Dubai.d1079.Destination-Travel-Guides?brandcid=LASTMINUTE-au.display.BLOG.DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG.generic&amp;utm_source=BLOG&amp;utm_medium=display&amp;utm_content=all&amp;utm_campaign=DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG\" target=\"_blank\">Dubai, UAE <\/a><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Dubai is one of those destinations that has to be seen to be believed \u2013 and December\/January\u2019s warm (but not too warm), clear days are the perfect time to do it. If you book in December, you could save more than 35% on your accommodation, which means a whole lot more cash for holiday shopping \ud83d\udecd\ufe0f<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 10px;\"><strong>5. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/Langkawi.d2062.Destination-Travel-Guides?brandcid=LASTMINUTE-au.display.BLOG.DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG.generic&amp;utm_source=BLOG&amp;utm_medium=display&amp;utm_content=all&amp;utm_campaign=DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG\" target=\"_blank\">Langkawi, Malaysia <\/a><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>An archipelago of 99 islands just off Malaysia\u2019s West Coast, Langkawi is home to some of the world\u2019s most incredible beaches. It\u2019s also home to the Langkawi Sky Bridge, which terrifies me (heights? No, thanks), but is a must-do for photographers and non-scaredy cats. Book your summer getaway now and you could save more than 25% on your stay.<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 1058px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/a.travel-assets.com\/travel-assets-manager\/d357df30-35e9-4c35-a3a1-c79d650d8235\/anz-17728-1048px-3.jpg\" width=\"1048\" height=\"768\" \/><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Langkawi Sky Bridge, Malaysia. Incredible views, except for scaredy cats like me \ud83d\ude1c<\/p><\/div>\n<h3 style=\"margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 10px;\"><strong>6. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/New-York.d234.Destination-Travel-Guides?brandcid=LASTMINUTE-au.display.BLOG.DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG.generic&amp;utm_source=BLOG&amp;utm_medium=display&amp;utm_content=all&amp;utm_campaign=DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG\" target=\"_blank\">New York, USA <\/a><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Wait, have I got that right? Lemme check&#8230; *rustles through notes* Yep, there are still awesome Xmas and New Year stays available in New York City&#8230; *taps on calculator* And not only can you still get a piece of those <em>Miracle on 34th Street<\/em> vibes, but you could also save up to 10% on your hotel compared to if you booked in July. Amazing!<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 10px;\"><strong>7. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/Hobart.d6052485.Destination-Travel-Guides?brandcid=LASTMINUTE-au.display.BLOG.DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG.generic&amp;utm_source=BLOG&amp;utm_medium=display&amp;utm_content=all&amp;utm_campaign=DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG\" target=\"_blank\">Hobart, TAS<\/a><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>I don\u2019t need to sell you on Hobart, do I? With its chilled-out locals, incredible food (everything from degustations to farmers\u2019 markets), excellent museums and multitude of whisky bars, it\u2019s your fave Aussie city, even if you don&#8217;t know it yet \ud83d\ude09 Book your Hobart summer holiday this month and you could save 25% or more on your stay.<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 1058px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/a.travel-assets.com\/travel-assets-manager\/d357df30-35e9-4c35-a3a1-c79d650d8235\/anz-17728-1048px-4.jpg\" width=\"1048\" height=\"590\" \/><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Is this beach paradise in Tassie? Yes, yes, it is. Bruny Island, off the coast of Hobart.<\/p><\/div>\n<h3 style=\"margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 10px;\"><strong>8. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/Bali.d602651.Destination-Travel-Guides?brandcid=LASTMINUTE-au.display.BLOG.DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG.generic&amp;utm_source=BLOG&amp;utm_medium=display&amp;utm_content=all&amp;utm_campaign=DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG\" target=\"_blank\">Bali, Indonesia <\/a><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Who doesn\u2019t love a cheeky Bali getaway? December\/January is technically part of the rainy season, but don\u2019t let that put you off (especially if you\u2019re dreaming of indulgent spa days and incredible cocktails, which are amazing in any weather). By booking at the last-minute, you could save 20% or more on your accommodation, which is <em>definitely<\/em> worth a few clouds.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 10px;\"><strong>9. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/Pokolbin.d181091.Destination-Travel-Guides?brandcid=LASTMINUTE-au.display.BLOG.DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG.generic&amp;utm_source=BLOG&amp;utm_medium=display&amp;utm_content=all&amp;utm_campaign=DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG\" target=\"_blank\">Pokolbin (Hunter Valley), NSW<\/a><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>One word: WINE. A few more words: the Hunter Valley is Australia\u2019s oldest wine region and home to phenomenal vineyards, cellar doors and restaurants. Pokolbin is in the heart of all the delicious action and if you book a summer escape this month, you could save up to 30% on your stay.<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 1058px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/a.travel-assets.com\/travel-assets-manager\/d357df30-35e9-4c35-a3a1-c79d650d8235\/anz-17728-1048px-5.jpg\" width=\"1048\" height=\"616\" \/><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rush hour in the Hunter Valley, NSW<\/p><\/div>\n<h3 style=\"margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 10px;\"><strong>\u00a010. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/London.d178279.Destination-Travel-Guides?brandcid=LASTMINUTE-au.display.BLOG.DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG.generic&amp;utm_source=BLOG&amp;utm_medium=display&amp;utm_content=all&amp;utm_campaign=DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG\" target=\"_blank\">London, UK <\/a><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Dreaming of a white Christmas? OK, you probably won\u2019t get that in London, but you will get festive Christmas markets, gorgeous city-wide decorations and never-ending opportunities\/excuses to drink mulled wine in public. If you book your trip at the last-minute, you could even save up to 5% on your stay, which is pretty great too.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/?brandcid=LASTMINUTE-au.display.BLOG.DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG.generic&amp;utm_source=BLOG&amp;utm_medium=display&amp;utm_content=all&amp;utm_campaign=DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>Plan your lastminute summer getaway<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/livelastminutedeals?brandcid=LASTMINUTE-au.display.BLOG.DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG.generic&amp;utm_source=BLOG&amp;utm_medium=display&amp;utm_content=all&amp;utm_campaign=DEC-18-CHEAP-XMAS-DESTINATIONS-BLOG\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>Get away THIS WEEKEND with these hot deals<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<h4 style=\"margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 0px;\"><strong><em>The nitty gritty:<\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n<p><em>Pricing analysis and estimated savings are based on a comparison of the average daily rate for 3 \u2013 5 star-rated and self-rated accommodation demand on lastminute.com.au for bookings made in July 2018, compared to December 2018, for travel between 23 December 2018 to 5 January 2019. Rates are subject to accommodation and date selections made.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Watch your step, \u2018cause I\u2019m about to spill some serious money-saving beans. Most people think travelling over Xmas is crazy..<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":98,"featured_media":44823,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[116,9],"tags":[4750,4748,4707,4749,4751],"acf":{"credits":[{"name":"","label":"","full_url":""}],"enable_review_score":false},"posts_api_cpm_point":"","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44821"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/98"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44821"}],"version-history":[{"count":26,"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44821\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":44850,"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44821\/revisions\/44850"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/44823"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44821"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=44821"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.com.au\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=44821"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}