Nothing feels quite as good as being on holiday, but shopping for things to take with you comes a pretty close second. What you pay for many travel accessories - beach towels, sun hats, flip-flops and sunglasses, for example - is largely a matter of individual taste. Obviously, Calvin Klein shades will set you back more than Superdrug's own brand, while you could get two extra-large striped beach towels at Argos for £9.99 or plump for a £13 cotton velour version at Boots.
But with many holiday basics, such as suntan cream, camera film and insect repellent, what you pay depends on where you buy - and in order to get the best deals, you'll have to be prepared to shop around (literally), because no one store is the cheapest source of everything.
If you're heading to the sun, you'll need some protection - from the high prices charged in Boots. A bottle of Ambre Solaire SPF15 will set you back £9.99 in Boots, but just £4.08 in Asda, or £4.99 in Sainsbury's and Superdrug (where it is half price at the moment). If you'd prefer a Piz Buin SPF8/15 duo, head to Safeway, which charges just £7.49, compared with £14.99 from all other high street stores that stock it.
Don't forget your aftersun - a 400ml bottle of Ambre Solaire skin soother can be yours for just £3.98 from Tesco, though Boots charges £8.69 for the exact same product. And if you're prone to insect bites, don't get stung by Boots, which charges £6.19 for 100ml of Autan, compared with £2.64 in Superdrug (again, this is a half-price offer) and £2.98 in Asda. Perhaps Boots customers are expected to fork out more than twice the Asda price because the repellent comes in a spray bottle.
In order to take home some precious memories, you'll need a camera. Disposable cameras are good for holidays because they come pre-loaded with film and you don't have to worry about damaging your more expensive photographic equipment during a fun day (or night) out. Asda sells a Kodak disposable camera for just £4.97, though you could pay as much as £7.99 for one in Superdrug. Oddly, the chemist also sells packs of three disposables for £9.99, so if you plan on taking plenty of pictures, this works out cheapest.
If you do take a standard camera with you, you'll find the cheapest film at Argos, provided you buy a three-pack, where 36 exposures of Kodak Ultra works out at just £2.99. If you're off on a short break or don't plan to take many photos, Sainsbury's sells the cheapest single pack for £3.99.
Advanced photographic system (APS) film is more expensive at around £5.99 for 40 exposures from Boots, Superdrug and Safeway. Sainsbury's is slightly cheaper at £5.49 and Asda sells the cheapest single pack at £4.98. But the best value comes from Tesco, whose three-pack of APS works out at just £3.33 per film.
Planning a few early morning trips? Then you'll need to be up and about early - a dinky travel alarm clock will set you back just £2.75 from Argos, or a whopping £7.99 from Boots.
Can't live without your stereo/hairdryer/laptop? If you want to plug an appliance in while on holiday, you'll need an adaptor - ones for use in the EU will set you back just £1.99 at Woolworths, £2.99 in Safeway and Boots, or £3.49 in Superdrug - but that's for two adaptors, one for the EU and one for the US.
If you're reasonably attached to sleeping through the night without losing a pint of blood to the local insect population, plug in mosquito-killers sell for just £4.99 in Safeway, though Argos is selling two for the price of one (£6.99) at the moment so it works out cheaper if you have several bedrooms to cover.
Finally, if you want to keep your cash safe while abroad, a moneybelt is one solution. Not many places sell them - on the high street, you'll be hard-pressed to find one anywhere other than Boots and Safeway, and Safeway is cheaper at £4.99. But if you want to keep money dry while splashing about at the water park, your only option is Boots - it's the only place we could find a waterproof wallet, for £6.99. Safeway does do a strange waterproof plastic box for £4.49 - but it doesn't look like it would fit terribly comfortably inside a swimsuit.
