Plan today to save on your winter beach getaway

OTTAWA— A weaker loonie means the price for Canadians to escape the snow and ice for the warmth of the sun this winter is going to be more costly than it has been in recent years.

But travel experts say that planning ahead and starting your search for the perfect beach holiday now will save you money.

Travel agent Omar Guechtal of the Flight Centre travel agency says booking early is the surest way to save this year.

“If you’re going to be waiting until the last minute, you will not be able to benefit,” he says.

Guechtal says tour companies have been looking to sell out their packages as early as possible.

“They’ve incentivized their packages with early booking bonuses, reduced deposits, added perks, free seat selection or other bonuses that you can get by booking early.”

Guechtal says tour companies sign contracts for hotels and flights negotiated in U.S. dollars, even though the packages they sell are priced in Canadian currency.

And while Canadians may previously have been accustomed to a strong Canadian dollar compared with the greenback, the loonie has been flirting with its lowest level in more than a decade in recent months and that’s helping drive up the cost of escaping winter.

Guechtal cautions those shopping online for a package trip to make sure the price they are being quoted is in Canadian dollars because many sites price their holidays in U.S. figures.

He says true last-minute deals are becoming more and more scarce.

“You have to be on the computer 24-7 and browsing a bazillion different websites in order to actually get a deal that’s going to be a deal.”