Package Holiday Addict

It was only after I had spent four hours staring at a computer screen, following a two hour session of brochure browsing - that I realised my love affair with First Choice would have to end.

It would mean resisting the seductions of “last-minute deals” and “slashed prices” which would prove almost impossible with the enticing destinations that flashed before me.

The trouble is - booking a holiday is an addictive process, much on the same level as alcoholics, shopaholics or even frequent drug users. We all crave our fix and while the void is filled for some by a simple cigarette, I need the more expensive option of a seven nights, self-catering, three-star in the Canaries to calm me.

In fact, I’ve just arrived home from an Ibizan experience. Sun, sea, sangrias and a continuous buzz of excitement is enough to get hooked on and as soon as the plane landed in the depressing drizzle of Stansted, I was already planning the quickest possible way in which we could return. So, once I had recuperated from my most recent Balearic bashing - it was straight back down to the travel agents for round two.

The only barricade that prevents me from being permanently bound to a sun bed by the sea is of course, money. That is why I’ve become an impulsive deal snatcher, who will remain consistent until the ultimate achievement of a bargain has been obtained. No in-flight meal or extra baggage for me please. I’ve also made a point in my diary of all the dates in which school holidays begin and end, sneakily working around the system of popular periods, so I can blag a cheaper getaway.

I’ve realised I must overcome this obsession and zip up my luggage trolley for good (or at least six months). My mother believes the only trip I should be taking is a one-way into the “real world”, one which does not involve sipping a Sex on the beach or wearing a sombrero. And I will, soon. Right now Thomas Cook have a four-star in Turkey and my name is already printed on the boarding pass ...