Travelling in luxury doesn't have to cost a fortune. I know because we've done it ourselves, most recently on a week in Rhodes staying at a private pool villa that felt every bit as high-end as the photos, for a fraction of what it would have cost us in peak season.

If you're wondering how to get cheap luxury holidays without compromising on the experience, here's exactly what worked for us, with real numbers rather than vague advice.

Travel Outside the High Season

Every destination has a high and low season, and the price difference between them is often huge. Hotels and villas can charge two or three times more during peak months simply because demand is so much higher.

We went to Rhodes in October rather than summer, and it saved us thousands of pounds compared to booking the same trip in July or August. It was still genuinely warm too, the sea felt lovely after being heated by months of summer sun, and the pool, while not heated, was perfectly refreshing once you got in. If you're chasing luxury holidays for less, shoulder season is one of the easiest wins available.

We've actually done this twice now. On a separate trip we stayed at a 5-star all-inclusive resort in Rhodes, again booking for October rather than summer, and again saved thousands compared to peak season pricing, a resort we'd genuinely never have been able to afford otherwise.

Both of these holidays would have cost around £7,000 to £8,000 booked in the summer holidays, but by going in autumn instead, and getting a free child place on one of them, we got each one for closer to £4,000.

The weather was still lovely, mostly around 26 degrees all week. If anything, the resort felt more luxurious for going off-season, not less, since everywhere was so much quieter. No queuing for sun loungers, no crowded pools, no fighting for a table at dinner, just a calmer, more relaxed version of the same 5-star experience.

The amazing private and luxurious garden at the villa we stayed in Kolymbia, Rhodes.

Book Outside School Holidays for a Free Child Place

This is the tip that made the single biggest difference to our own trip, and it's one most luxury holiday guides never mention. Because we travelled just one week outside the school holidays, we also qualified for a free child place, which saved us thousands compared to booking during term-time break dates. With the holiday working out at upwards of £1,000 a person, having one child go free made a genuinely huge difference to the total cost.

Tour operators and travel companies frequently offer free or heavily discounted child places on holidays booked outside peak school holiday windows. If your circumstances allow any flexibility at all, even shifting your trip by a single week either side of the school holidays is worth checking before you book, since the saving can be enormous.

Choose a Villa With a Private Pool Instead of a Hotel

Booking a private villa rather than a hotel room for our second family holiday to Rhodes completely changed the feel of our holiday, and it wasn't as expensive as we expected.

We stayed at a modern villa in Kolymbia with our own private pool, and the difference to a shared hotel pool was massive. No queuing for sun loungers, no sharing the water with dozens of other guests, just our own space to swim, relax and unwind in complete privacy.

It had a stunning landscaped garden too, with luxury furniture set around the pool, which made it feel even more like our own private retreat rather than just somewhere to sleep between days out.

What also made it feel luxurious wasn't extravagance, it was the small thoughtful touches. We arrived to welcome snacks, a bottle of wine and juice waiting for us, and the beds were huge and properly comfortable.

Towels and bed linen were refreshed mid-week even though it was a self-catering stay rather than a hotel. Two separate bathrooms meant no queuing in the mornings either, one for us and one for the kids.

Villas like this are often genuinely comparable in price to a mid-range hotel once you're travelling as a family and splitting the cost across more people, especially if you opt for a modern luxury villa rather than something more basic.

5* hotel we stayed at in Rhodes, saving thousands on the summer prices by travelling in late October instead.

Self-Catering vs All-Inclusive: Which Actually Saves More

We've done both an all-inclusive hotel stay and a self-catering villa stay in the same part of Rhodes, so we can compare honestly.

All-inclusive is brilliant if you want to switch off completely and not think about food or drink costs at all, but it comes at a price, and you're sharing everything with hundreds of other guests. Our villa stay worked out more affordable overall because we mostly cooked for ourselves, with the odd meal out at a local taverna when we fancied a change.

Self-catering also meant eating in peace rather than queuing at a buffet, and cooking what we actually wanted rather than working around a set menu.

If you're trying to get cheap luxury holidays without the all-inclusive price tag, self-catering with the occasional meal out is a genuinely good middle ground, especially somewhere with good local tavernas within walking distance. We booked ours as a package villa holiday with car hire included, which meant we could explore the whole island at our own pace too, rather than being tied to organised excursions.

Create a Luxury Holiday Fund

Smart planning helps you find a good deal, but smart financial management is what actually lets you afford the trip in the first place.

If you know you want a luxury holiday next year, start a dedicated savings account now rather than trying to fund it all at once. Even small, regular amounts add up significantly over several months, and having the money already set aside means you're not relying on a credit card once you're there.

Be Flexible With Your Dates and Destination

The more flexible you can be, the better your chances of finding a genuinely good deal. Hotels and villas often run promotions on specific dates, and some destinations are simply cheaper than others at any given time of year.

If you've got your heart completely set on one specific place at one specific time, this tip won't help much. But if you're open to where you go and roughly when, you'll have a far better chance of finding luxury holidays for less, and you might discover somewhere you wouldn't have otherwise considered.

This is trickier if you've got school-age children though, especially in the UK, where you can be fined for taking them out of school for five days or more. We've actually paid that fine ourselves for one of our holidays, because it still worked out considerably cheaper overall than paying the extra thousands it would have cost to travel during the school holidays instead.

Amazing pool bar at the luxury resort we stayed in once in Rhodes.

Book Tours and Activities in Advance

If there are tours or activities you want to do, booking them online before you travel is almost always cheaper than arranging them once you're there. Tour operators based right outside expensive resorts often charge considerably more per person than the exact same tour booked online in advance.

It won't save you thousands, but it can easily save you hundreds, money that's much better spent elsewhere on your trip.

Set a Daily Budget and Stick to It

Booking an affordable luxury holiday is one thing, coming home without a nasty credit card bill is another. It's easy to overspend once you're away and everything's going on a card.

A simple trick that works well is dividing your total holiday spending money by the number of days you're away, giving yourself a clear daily budget. Stick to it where you can, and if you spend less on one day, treat yourself a little more the next.

Luxury for Less Is Genuinely Possible

Between travelling outside the high season, timing our trip around a free child place, choosing a private pool villa over a hotel, and mostly self-catering, our Rhodes holiday felt genuinely luxurious without the price tag that usually comes with it. None of it required cutting corners, just planning around when and how we booked.

If you're smart about timing, flexible about dates, and willing to consider a villa over a traditional hotel, a proper luxury holiday for less is absolutely within reach.