A West Midlands mum has shared her top tips for sourcing dirt cheap deals from Birmingham Airport after making 13 trips from the Solihull-based airport in one year. Busy mum and teacher Claire Howard from Solihull spent 2024 travelling to European cities and resorts on trips that lasted just 24 hours as part of the ‘extreme daytrip’ craze.
Seasoned bargain hunter Claire did a baker’s dozen worth of whistle-stop trips from BHX to destinations like Poznań, Dublin, Alicante and Bucharest. Claire worked out that across all 13 trips in 2024 she spent an average of £180 per trip, with her cheapest deal being a £27 return to Paris- Beauvais.
“It feels like you have been away for ages. It is a different way of doing things” said English teacher Claire. “Other trips I have done are relaxed, where you are happy to wander and see where the day takes you” she said.
READ MORE: ‘I used Birmingham Airport to do 13 day-trips in a year without annual leave – I’m now addicted’
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Claire used to be deputy head of a sixth form, but 18 months ago she experienced burnout symptoms and relinquished her deputy head role. As a result, she took a pay cut and dropped down to four days a week.
As a result, she will fly out on Monday night or at the crack of dawn on Tuesday, and return at teatime on the same day, ready to return to work on Wednesday.
“I thought, I’m not just going to spend my Tuesday at home cleaning” said Claire. Extreme day-tripping, where bargain-hunting travellers use local airports to go on day-long adventures, has taken the UK by storm. The trips are described as ‘extreme’ as you often don’t book accommodation and pack as much as possible into 24 hours.
Extreme day-tripping Facebook groups will see thousands of members share their hints and tips for adventures, which generally begin from regional airports like Birmingham, Manchester and East Midlands.
Claire, who is also a mum to two teenagers, started her challenge after a friend took her away for a day at the start of last year. “A friend of mine took me to Dublin for the day for my birthday and doing that and realising how doable it was I saw the extreme day trip groups and joined that” said Claire.
“I really loved going alone. My kids have really enjoyed it it’s been showing them what you can do. I am starting to run out of places from Birmingham Airport!
“For me, it has to be BHX, I know that when I land I can be in bed half an hour later” said Solihull resident Claire. Adding: “Paris-Beauvais was really pretty for a daytrip to a really nice French town, I would really recommend that.”
Claire’s tips for finding cheap deals from Birmingham Airport
Claire has shared her top tips for finding cheap deals from Birmingham Airport, which can be used for 24-hour trips or extended to longer breaks:
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Claire said the trip still counts as an extreme day trip if you fly out late the night before, and complete the holiday in 24 hours, which she has done many times. “I will fly after school on a Monday, stay at a cheap youth hostel and then I have the full day” said Claire.
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If you’re trying a a solo 24-hour day trip for the first time, pick a city like Dublin, Belfast or Edinburgh. “They are all like a 50 minute flight there’s no language barrier,” Claire explained.
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Be brave enough to try going alone. “The first time I did it alone I got home and felt like a female warrior,” recalled Claire.
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Use Skyscanner and click on the ‘explore anywhere’ function to see a variety of destinations.
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If you can be flexible with your dates, there is an option on Skyscanner to select that, which will give you more options.
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Claire also uses airline sites directly, particularly the Ryanair flash sale.
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“Go after work in the evening if you are short on annual leave”.
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Claire worked out that across all 13 trips she has spent an average of £180 per trip.
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Spend around £65 maximum and try to stick to the £45 to £55 mark for flights.
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“Don’t assume that weekends and school holidays are massively expensive” – Claire bagged a £45 return trip to Poznań during October half term.
Claire and her son Henry in Montreux
(Image: Claire Howard / SWNS)
From January to December 2024 she completed an incredible 13 trips to destinations like Warsaw, Poznan, Dublin, Alicante and Geneva. You can find Claire’s full list of trips, here.
Claire said she challenged herself to travel more after she found out she had the BRCA1 gene, and underwent an elective hysterectomy, followed by a double mastectomy in March 2024. She now plans to do six trips in 2025 after getting a taste for the “addictive” travel bug.
She said: “That’s why I crammed in all these trips, I had this goal having that to look forward to after my recovery, I found it life-changing.”