Six top destinations Cape Town £495

KLM from London City Airport via Amsterdam. Must be booked by May 31. Valid for departures until June 27. Minimum stay five nights, maximum one month. Bridge the World (0870 4441716, bridgetheworld.com).

Sydney: £509

Korean Air from Heathrow via Seoul. Must be booked by May 30. Valid for departures until June 30. Minimum stay seven days, maximum one year. Quest Travel (0870 4423513, questtravel.com).

Los Angeles: £286

British Airways from Heathrow. Book by May 27. Valid for departures May 16 - 31. Minimum stay one Saturday night, maximum one month. Trailfinders (020-7937 5400, trailfinders.com).

New York: £181

Kuwait Airlines from Heathrow. Valid for departures until May 31. No minimum stay, maximum one month. Travelbag (0870 8901458, travelbag.co.uk).

Amsterdam: £51.20

BMI British Midland from Heathrow. Must be booked on line (£5 if booked by phone 0870 6070555). Valid for departures indefinitely. No minimum stay, maximum one year. BMI British Midland ( flybmi.com).

Paris: £59

British Airways from Birmingham. Must be booked online (£10 supplement by phone 0845 7733 377) and at least 30 days before travel. Valid for departures indefinitely. British Airways ( ba.com).

The pick of the rest Mumbai: £372

Lufthansa, via Frankfurt, from Heathrow, Manchester, Birmingham, Edinburgh or Newcastle. Must be booked by May 31. Valid for departures until June 30. Minimum stay one Saturday night, maximum one month. Airline Warehouse (0870 7707339, airlinewarehouse.com).

Corfu: £139

Monarch charter from Manchester. Departs May 19 for seven nights. Avro (0870 0360116, avro.co.uk).

Santiago: £513

Aerolineas Argentinas from Gatwick via Madrid and Buenos Aires. Valid for departures until May 29. Minimum stay five days, maximum one month. Journey Latin America (020-8747 3108, journeylatinamerica.co.uk).

Venice: £61.40

BMI British Midland from Heathrow. Must be booked on line (£5 if booked by phone 0870 6070555). Valid for departures indefinitely. No minimum stay, maximum one year. BMI British Midland ( flybmi.com).

And the rail alternative Paris/Brussels: £59. Lille: £55

Eurostar from Waterloo or Ashford (no advance purchase required but may not be available last minute). Same day weekend return fare. Valid for Saturday and Sunday departures. 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.