Six top destinations

New York: £230
United Airlines from Heathrow. Must be booked by December 31. Valid for departures January 10-February 28. Minimum stay one Saturday night, maximum one month. ebookers (0870 8146024, ebookers.com).

Los Angeles: £283
Virgin Atlantic from Heathrow. Must be booked by December 31. Valid for departures January 10-February 28. Minimum stay one Saturday night. Thomas Cook Flights Direct (0870 1111111, thomascook.com).

Sydney: £599
Royal Brunei Airlines from Heathrow via Brunei. Valid for departures on December 13, 14, 23 and 24. Flights back to London permitted January 12-31. No minimum stay. Trailfinders (020-7938 3939, trailfinders.com).

Hong Kong: £385
Lufthansa from Heathrow, London City, Manchester or Birmingham via Frankfurt. Must be booked by December 31. Valid for departures January 11-April 30, Minimum stay one Saturday night, maximum one month. Quest Worldwide Travel (0870 4423513, questtravel.com).

Paris: £59.20
BMI from Heathrow. Must be booked online (£10 supplement if booked by phone). Valid for departures indefinitely. No minimum stay, maximum one year. BMI (flybmi.com, 0870 6070555).

Amsterdam: £95.10
British Airways from Manchester. Must be booked online (£15 supplement if booked by phone). Valid for departures indefinitely. No minimum stay, maximum one year. British Airways (ba.com, 0870 8509850).

The pick of the rest

Nice: £55.60
BMI from Heathrow. Must be booked online (£10 supplement if booked by phone). Valid for departures indefinitely. No minimum stay, maximum one year. BMI (flybmi.com, 0870 6070555).

Guatemala City: £484
United Airlines from Heathrow via Los Angeles or San Francisco. Valid for departures January 1-March 17. Minimum stay one Saturday night, maximum one month. Journey Latin America (020-8747 3108, journeylatinamerica.co.uk).

Melbourne: £519
China Eastern from Heathrow via Shanghai. Valid for departures February 1-March 31. Minimum stay one Saturday night, maximum one month. Flight Centre (0870 4990040, flightcentre .co.uk).

Johannesburg: £399
Qatar Airways from Heathrow, Gatwick of Manchester via Doha. Valid for departures January 7-March 18. Minimum stay three days, maximum two months. Airline Warehouse (0870 7707339, airlinewarehouse.com).

And the rail alternative

Paris/Brussels: £59. Lille: £55
Eurostar from Waterloo or Ashford. Must be booked at least 21 days before departure. No advance booking required for Saturday or Sunday same day returns or trips including a Saturday night stay. Eurostar (08705 186186, eurostar.com).

· NB Fares can change rapidly. These were available in reasonable quantities at the time of writing, but they can sell out in a sudden rush.