Canary Islands Holidays

The chance to scoop the title of ‘Britain’s Savviest Traveller’ is up for grabs for travellers who are great at giving advice and hunting down deals. Top travel deals website Travelzoo has launched its savvy traveller competition to reward the most skillful British bargain hunter. At the same time, Travelzoo is revealing some of its own top tips and tricks for securing cheap travel deals.

Advice ranges from how to get the most out of cruise cabin upgrades to getting the best airline seats. For instance, to give yourself the best chance of an upgrade when flying with a scheduled airline, book a premium economy seat – as these tend to be the smallest cabins so often get overbooked.

If you prefer the idea of spending your holiday on the open ocean, make sure you ask about all the cabin upgrade options when you book. While you may decide it’s not worth an extra £40 for a nicer inside cabin it could well be worth an extra £100 for an outside cabin with stunning sea views.

Another money-saving airline tip from the Travelzoo team is always book a return flight, even if you’re not planning to use it, as single tickets can often work out more expensive. Flying on a weekday rather than at the weekend is also often cheaper.

A unique use for your old mobile phone is to swap it for air miles using a phone swop scheme. You could be surprised with the return you get compared with selling it second hand.

Travelzoo’s search for Britain’s Savviest Traveller will be running until the 9th July 2010. Eager travellers who are practiced at securing travel deals can submit up to 300 words explaining why they deserve the savvy traveller title. The competition will also be running in Germany, France and Spain. The winner in each country will receive a dream holiday for two and will be announced as his or her country’s savviest traveller. For the UK winner, Mark’s Travel is sponsoring a two week holiday worth £5,000.