Multi destination holidays

Woodstok2000

Seconding Trailfinders. We've also had good experiences with dialaflight.

silvercar

Maldives is beautiful and is very relaxed, rather than any dressing up. It's the only place where I will only pack a single pair of flip flops and no other shoes. It's also the only place where all inclusive is a must. Each hotel is it's own island, so there is nowhere else to go to eat and so prices are steep. AI takes away that worry. (The food is far superior to AI that you may get in main land Europe AI hotels).

strawb_shortcake

Thanks again all,

After speaking to my Husband more, we will speak to our local trailfinders, see what they can offer us.

Backup plan, is to go with just the Maldives but longer than a week, my Husband endures 2 long flights, we then put the delta towards a road trip in the US he wants to assuming he's happy to do long haul…

Worried_fool

Some ideas:

For your island holiday, consider Sri Lanka or Seychelles. Sri Lanka is both wonderful and very affordable, and DIY there is easy. Also consider the island of Nossi Be, off Madagascar;

For your long-haul flights, consider the two airlines based in the UAE (Etihad and Emirates) so that you get a stopover there at minimal extra cost. Consider also Oman Air: Muscat (their hub) is far more interesting than Dubai and is also in the Gulf. And you might look at Ethiopian (who fly into Nossi Be), in which case the stopover would be in Addis Ababa rather than the Gulf. The Addis Sheraton is probably more luxurious than anything you would find in Dubai, and of course the city offers enormous contrasts;

For your break in Europe: get a cheap flight at the very start of your trip, and begin your long-haul journey from there rather than from the UK. That way, you save on Air Passenger Duty. (You could also fly back into somewhere in Europe and then return home from there, but that would mean paying more tax.)

jimjames

Those prices seem crazy, I'm not sure if it's Maldives that's ramping it up but multiple airlines shouldn't do so. I've booked multi leg trips via Far East and it was under £1000 pp for the flights

strawb_shortcake

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81895884#Comment_81895884

Looking at Ethiad we can get 3 of the flights for £1k each, then it would be a cheap flight home.

Maldives accommodation seems to start around £800 per night, you can get cheaper on a local island, but not sure that's for us this time

Worried_fool

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81895894#Comment_81895894

Whereas in Sri Lanka accommodation starts at more like £8 per night, and for £40 per night can be extremely comfortable. Even in the Seychelles, a budget of £200 per night would be reasonable.

Emmia

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81893936#Comment_81893936

I'd give the US a swerve until Trump is out. Too many reports of people being detained by ICE for no reason including British tourists.

strawb_shortcake

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81896668#Comment_81896668

Yes the US trip will be a good few years away,

Bigphil1474

We've done Oman for a month a couple of times in the last few years, really lovely country (visiting family who are working there). Not a strict country either. Driving is pretty good relatively speaking. Not a lot in the way of public transport. We were up in the north mainly around Muscat, but also up to Khasab by plane and down to Nizwa by car. A couple of good desert camps as well. The south around Salalah is supposed to be very different but in a good way, but we never made it there. I would describe Oman as the kind of traditional middle eastern country I imagined it would be, whilst I'd describe Dubai as a bit of an afront tbh…(each to their own of course).

We are visiting Jordan this year, which looks like a great trip so far. We are meeting up with family there, but will be DIYing the trip.

The family who live out Oman way have travelled to Sri Lanka before and had a great time. They stayed on a tea estate and at a beach club. Can't remember much more than that. They are a family with kids though so may be different.