Anyone who has even the vaguest interest in travelling has some sort of mental checklist of places they want to see in their lifetimes. Sure, there are many destinations on it that are easily achievable, but then there are the more exotic and harder to reach places. People usually refer to them as their ‘dream destinations’. And for the UK population, a lot of their ‘grass is greener’ places are found in the Southern Hemisphere
Sadly, and more often than not, they take the definition of dream meaning “an unrealistic or self-deluding fantasy” rather than “a cherished aspiration, ambition, or ideal”. The reasons for this are manifold. Real-life makes things hard, they still haven’t invented the proverbial money tree and time restrictions sometimes make finding time for the gym almost impossible, let alone backpacking through Patagonia.
As someone who comes from both hemispheres and has spent their life dividing their time between the two, there is one very important thing that the majority of people dreaming about heading south don’t take into consideration. When to travel. If you choose to head south over summer, you’re heading into the other hemisphere’s offseason. While your colleagues turn lobster red on a Spanish beach, headphones in to block out the angry man from Manchester yelling at his tearaway children or that same stag party that ruined their quiet drinks at the bar last night you can head south for an experience you’ll never forget. With careful planning, diligence, saving and a focus on that “cherished aspiration, ambition, or ideal” you could be trekking the Abel Tasmans, ………………… later this year, next or any year following.
Let us give you a gentle nudge and some insight into how to see:
Buenos Aires, Argentina, in the offseason
Buenos Aires is a major player on many people’s dream lists. Partially for the city itself and partly as a gateway to Patagonia. Now, here’s where things get interesting. Winter in the Southern Hemisphere runs from June to September but is milder than up here in the North. In fact, the average temperature is roundabout 12°. Not too bad at all, just remember to pack a jumper, and you’ll be fine. All of the usual tourist sights are accessible, but with a massive drop in visitor numbers, there are no long queues or elbows jostling for a glimpse. Naturally, the incredible food and wine that act as another Argentian drawcard are equally good no matter the season and the world-class cocktails at bars like Harrison’s (ok, it’s a speakeasy if you’re being pedantic) taste even better in milder temperatures. If you visit neighbourhoods like beautiful Almagro, a cultural hub populated with art spaces and social clubs, your insight into the city and culture is going to be far more authentic than in the sweltering bustle of the overcrowded summer months. Also, August is the month that Buenos Aries hosts the annual Tango Festival.
✈ London – Buenos Aires in June from £624
✈ London – Buenos Aires in September from £622
KAKAK Tips: There are significant savings to be made on hotel prices, with a noticeable discount on prices overall when compared to peak season. The hostel circuit is excellent, and many hostels also have lower prices during the off-season. Argentina’s street food is not only delicious but also very reasonably priced. If you’re happy to supplant sit-down meals with Choripán, Empanadas or Sandwiches de Miga, you can make some delicious savings. These discounts can have a massive impact on your freedom to travel either within Argentina, Patagonia or into neighbouring countries like Chile. When you take into consideration that flights during this time can often be as much as half what you’d pay during peak season, a trip to the city of Fair Winds suddenly starts to look a whole lot more possible.
New Zealand on the cheap
The Kiwi band, Crowded House, (no Australia, they belong to Aotearoa) once sang “4 seasons in one day”, and while they weren’t actually referring to the country’s weather patterns, they may have well been. Cape Reinga at the tip of the North Island remains mild in even the depths of winter, while Southland may be blanketed with pristine snow starting the mad rush to Queenstown and the surrounding ski slopes. I mean, when one of the mountain ranges offering slopes is called The Remarkables, you can’t go wrong.
No one is going to disembark their plane when they get to New Zealand and say “Right, I made it this far and now I’m staying put”. No, when you make it to NZ you travel and see as much of the country as you possibly can. Now, New Zealand isn’t cheap by any stretch, but there are ways to pinch pennies and make your savings go further.
✈ London – Auckland in June from £649
✈ London – Auckland in September from £646
✈ London – Wellington in July from £872
KAYAK Tips: Probably the biggest saving you are going to make is on flights. Similar to Argentina and Australia, simply flying during off-season immediately means massive savings. As is to be expected, accommodation is also cheaper in a lot of the country if you choose to avoid heading for the slopes. Another way to save money in most place, but especially in New Zealand, is to self-cater as much as possible. Shop at the supermarkets and prepare your own meals and save extra money for that bungee jump or whatever it is you want to do.
Capering around in Cape Town, South Africa
At the risk of sounding like a broken record, prices on flights, accommodation and even restaurants drop significantly during the offseason. The truth is, a Cape Town winter is a wonderful thing. One of the first things to note is the absence of tourists every which way you turn, this, combined with average daytime temperatures of 17° between May and September makes hiking Table Mountain, one of the ‘New7Wonders of Nature’, ideal. And it’s outdoors that the fun continues. While sunbathing might be only-for-the-brave, the beaches of Capetown remain pristine and ideal for a stroll or, even better, a surf. The waves around Cape Town are actually at their best and a lot of surfers will forego summer just to get a ride on these here waves. From May onwards some very special guests start arriving around Cape Town’s coastlines. Above the surface, the whale-watching is amazing as Southern Right, Humpbacks and Bryde’s whales migrate to the seaside town of Hermanus, just an hour’s drive away, to start the next circle of life. Hanging out of the shore of Gansbaai, just two hours from Cape Town is one of the densest occurrences of the great white shark in the world. Here for feeding, not breeding, due to the influx of fur seals in the area, there is a range of companies offering steel cage diving where you’ll be lowered in a reinforced cage into the middle of the swarm for an incredibly up-close-and-personal experience with the ocean’s apex predator.
✈ London – Cape Town in July from £513
✈ Birmingham – Cape Town in August from £661
✈ Edinburgh – Cape Town in September from £537
KAYAK Tip: The other reason to head to South Africa in the offseason is for the safaris. They are much cheaper, far less sparsely populated, the natural light leads to incredible sunsets and lighting that can’t be beat (and isn’t seen in the summer), the brush and trees and bare making it easier to sight the animals and…………it’s also the season when many animals give birth, so the chances of seeing, pups, cubs foals and baby animals of all kind are greatly increased.
If you are interested in finding out more about off-peak safaris, have a read of our Safari with kids guide. One of our KAYAK employees shares her experiences of going on an off-peak Safari through Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe with her family in tow. Whether you have kids or not, the tips are incredibly valuable, and Fie’s story is illuminating and inspiring.
Travel Australia with these tips
For generations of Brits, Australia is right up at the top of their list of places they most want to see. While the likes of Neighbours, Steve Irwin, Kylie and the Bee Gees have indelibly imprinted Australia on the pop-culture map, it’s the country itself that really appeals. Australia is a vast country, and in winter most of the country’s temperatures should still be double figures, but as long as you pack accordingly the sights will remain equally impressive no matter what season. Whether you’re after opera houses or blue mountains, great barrier reefs or red sand deserts, street art or rock paintings, urban cool or deserted coastlines or beach, beer and BBQs the Australia you’ve always dreamed could actually become a reality.
✈ London – Sydney in June from £561
✈ London – Melbourne in July from £633
✈ London – Brisbane in August from £763
✈ London – Perth in September from £534
✈ London – Sydney in September from £564
KAYAK Tip: Once again, flights and accommodation prices in the off season make a massive difference. Like New Zealand, going out for drinks makes for a pricey night out. Famous for its beer and wine, exploring the selection from the local supermarket can save you big bucks. Also, hiring a car with a pick-up in one city and a drop-off in another is very common down under, isn’t too pricey and gives you the freedom to see the country in bursts and at your own pace. For the ultimate freedom, it’s fairly common for backpackers to buy a cheap, used car or bus, drive around in it as long as they stay and then sell it on to the next group of backpackers for a slightly lower price than they purchased it for. (Check here for used autos in NZ)
Samoa – wake up right on the beach
Each of the Polynesian islands is a paradise but there’s something extra special about Samoa. One of the first things you’ll notice is the colours. The greens of the flora, the blues of the water, and the hues of volcanic rock are so vibrant as to seem almost unreal. The only downside to this is that the poor Instagrammers will get sick of having to add a #nofilter tag to every picture. The second thing you’ll notice is the warmth of the people. Fa’a Samoa (The Samoan Way) is the socio-political and traditional way of life that informs Samoan culture, and the focus on extended family and communal way of living leads to an open, warm and welcoming approach to visitors that’ll leave you wondering why everyone back home maintains such a glum disposition in public.
Now, flights to Samoa are always going to be the biggest burn when planning a trip travelling around the two main islands of Savai’i and Upolu, but once you make it, you can live it while being tight with your purse strings. Booking a reasonably priced hotel is definitely advisable for the day you arrive and before you fly out again but for the rest of the time, you can be quite spontaneous. There is plenty of good and cheap accommodation but for the more adventurous, or broke, or both, staying in a traditional Samoan fale (house) can be the best idea for several reasons. They usually won’t have electricity, so you want to approach a stay with a camping-type attitude, but these cheap accommodations are often found right on the shore. Samoa is much more laid-back anyway, and there are hardly any resorts on the island. So what would you prefer? Sitting poolside in a resort that could be anywhere in the world and greeting the morning by walking five metres and diving directly into the ocean to kickstart your day.
✈ London – Apia, Samoa in September from £1048
✈ Sydney – Apia, Samoa in September from £337
✈ Auckland – Apia, Samoa in September from £330
KAYAK Insider tip: If you are trekking the antipodes already, you can fly to Samoa (and Fiji, see below) from both New Zealand and Australia for a very reasonable price. If you’ve made it all that way and can stretch the budget a little further; you’ll never regret it.
KAYAK Tip: Do you want your accommodation to be smack bang in the middle of the action? Search via KAYAK Heat Maps and filter for Nightlife!
How to do paradise on a budget, Fiji
It’s probably best to talk about Samoa’s Pacific Island cousin, Fiji, about now. Unlike Samoa, Fiji is the kind of paradise where relaxing at a resort is the main reason for coming here. Sure, relaxation reigns supreme on both islands, but Fiji’s approach is more luxurious. Something the two islands can definitely agree on, though, is that ingratiating yourself with the locals is one of the best ways to enjoy yourself. Whether it’s trading stories and anecdotes or drinking Kava together, a mildly narcotic drink brewed on the island, the warmth exuded by the majority of Fijians is going to make that great holiday exceptional.
✈ London – Nadi, Fiji in September from £1067
✈ Brisbane – Nadi, Fiji in September from £417
✈ Auckland – Nadi, Fiji in September from £354
KAYAK Insider Tip: Following on from the flights from OZ and NZ tip, peak season on the two islands lasts until the end of August, meaning if you plan well and tag a trip to the Pacific Islands onto your larger trip and push it to the beginning of September you can make even more savings on accommodation etc.
Bussing around Bali on a budget
Alrighty, Bali doesn’t really need an introduction. It’s one of the most popular long-haul destinations with Brits already, but the essence of Bali means that it’s actually a destination which you can do on any budget. A lot of people will head here and take the resort approach, but they actually miss out on everything that makes Bali great. Like many places in the Southern Hemisphere, avoiding the tourist traps and heading out into the land and culture proper is what will make this trip unforgettable.
With Bali relying so much on the tourist trade, it’s only natural that there are scam artists looking to fleece you for a buck scattered amongst the regular traders. But most of the scams are pretty straightforward, and if you keep your wits about you, it shouldn’t be a problem. Keep you eyes peeled at the cash exchange, negotiate a price before taking a taxi, don’t take a person’s picture without asking as they may expect a commission after the fact, etc. Having said that, the majority of Balinese people are warm, open, friendly and can make a real difference to your stay. Save money by chatting to your taxi driver or shop keeper and getting advice on where to go for authentic food (that’s twice as tasty and half the price from the main street shops that dilute their flavours for the “Western Palette”) and also what you should see to really understand the country’s beauty. The beaches, the temples, the villages and villagers who practice dance and music outside in the open, the family-run guest houses and the secret views that aren’t overrun by tourists. The only cost is that you may be leaving a little bit of your soul behind you.
✈ London – Denpasar in July from £525
✈ Birmingham – Denpasar in August from £741
✈ London – Denpasar in September from £466
KAYAK Tip: As usual, flights during this period are a few hundred pounds cheaper and with temperatures ranging from 24°-34° you’ll still be loving that sun. To navigate around the island try travelling by bus. While the bus timetable accuracy makes the British railway network seem like clockwork, the buses go everywhere, are dirt cheap and with the rowdy mishmash of tourists and locals, are a genuinely fun experience.
Peru – see Machu Picchu and save in the new year
There is a very good reason that Peru has been saved for last, and that is because Peru is the all topsy-turvy compared to the other countries we’ve looked at until now. Peru’s winter (from May to November) is the dry season and is therefore flooded with tourists, and the prices are consequently driven up – the complete opposite of New Zealand, Argentina and Australia, etc. If Peru is one of the places you most want to see, but money is an issue, then travelling between December and April is a sure fire way to cut corners when it comes to budget.
Do not let the name “rainy season” put you off either. Sure, the heavens do open from time to time, but showers are short, and with average temperatures in the high 20s, a sunshower will be well preferable compared to the grey, grey grass of home.On top of this, if you plan your calendar accordingly there are a bunch of summer highlights to take advantage of. How about celebrating Christmas or NYE in Peru? Hot sun all day and a feast and fireworks display at midnight, the total opposite of a British Christmas. Maybe you want to hold off until February and wait for Carnaval. Warning: the obligatory water fights are contagiously fun so be prepared to get soaked. While Carnaval is definitely the most festive and colourful time of year, do take into account that the Inca trail is closed for Feb more maintenance. Luckily, Mach Picchu is open all year round and visiting this incredible 15th-century Inca citadel and hiking the surrounding areas is made oh-such-much-more enjoyable due to the lack of tourists.
✈ London – Lima in January from £511
✈ London – Lima in February from £494
KAYAK TIP: Apart from the fact that you should flip the travel times when compared to all the other destinations on this list to make optimal savings, there is one other massive advantage, and that is that Peruvian beaches are off the hook. As you backpack or road-trip around the country make sure to hit the coastlines. Head north to towns like Máncora and Puerto Chicama for sunbeams and some of the best surf in the world.
Are you in need of a short-term and cheap getaway to keep you going while you start preparing for the Southern Hemisphere? Use KAYAK Explore to search for cheap flights over the next few months. Simply click on the ‘Dates’ field and filter by ‘Anytime’, by season or by month; add your maximum budget and Explore will show you the best flights worldwide for you. Click any price you like on the interactive map and start booking. Warning: there is an acute danger of wanderlust!
Note: These rates are based on search queries made on KAYAK.co.uk on April 17th, 2017. The prices are quoted in GBP. Flight prices are based on results for a return economy flight search. Hotel prices are for double occupancy and include taxes and fees. Prices are subject to change, may vary, or no longer be available.
