Taiwan is the Ultimate Christmas Shopping Destination

LONDON, November 19, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --



Taiwan is the cheapest destination to buy Christmas gifts this year, while Brazil is the most expensive

Hotels.com today reveals that Taiwan is the destination offering the greatest value for bargain hunters this Christmas, as it tops the list of destinations where consumers can get the best value for money for their gifts.

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The Hotels.com Christmas Shopping Basket looks at the price of 13 of the most popular - globally available - presents across 29 countries, to produce a consumer spending index, with potential gifts ranging from iPads to Barbie's Dreamhouse.

Taiwan was found, on average, to be the best value destination for Christmas shopping with a combined shopping basket of £917.98, followed by Japan (£1,291.11) and Argentina (£1,296.08) in second and third place.

Brazil was the country with the most expensive shopping basket at £2,987.61, over £1,000 more than the global average of £1,831.14.

The Hotels.com Christmas Shopping Basket consists of:

• iPad Air
• iPad with retina display
• Ladies real leather gloves
• Jean Paul Gaultier 'Le Male' Eau de Toilette 75ml
• Calvin Klein socks
• iPhone 5S
• Chloe by Chloe Perfume 75ml
• Spiderman lunch box
• Susan Boyle Home for Christmas album
• Barbie Dreamhouse
• How I Met Your Mother season 7
• Levis 501s (men's straight leg jeans)
• Harry Potter box set (all books)

Alison Couper of the Hotels.com brand said, "Christmas shopping always seems to be more alluring when done abroad and what's better than combining gift buying with a holiday! Our shopping basket is a great way for consumers to find the best places to pick up Christmas bargains."

The total costs per country for the entirety of the Hotels.com Christmas shopping basket:

    Rank Country         Average price of basket (GBP)
       1 Taiwan           917.98
       2 Japan           1291.11
       3 Argentina       1296.08
       4 Korea           1307.46
       5 Thailand        1340.00
       6 Switzerland     1411.25
       7 Hong Kong       1594.43
       8 Canada          1649.58
       9 India           1692.86
      10 Singapore       1716.34
      11 Russia          1718.93
      12 Sweden          1735.78
      13 USA             1754.62
      14 Australia       1814.10
      15 Colombia        1825.72
      16 The Netherlands 1902.37
      17 China           1914.89
      18 France          1956.04
      19 Ireland         1964.34
      20 New Zealand     1976.85
      21 Spain           2015.62
      22 UK              2020.30
      23 Germany         2034.58
      24 Mexico          2056.17
      25 Denmark         2169.08
      26 Italy           2275.53
      27 Finland         2356.83
      28 Norway          2407.03
      29 Brazil          2987.16

* Gift prices calculated as the average cost from three local retailers in each country, then converted to GBP - apart from items with one global figure (iPad and iPad with retina display).  Exchange rates correct as of 11/11/13 13:00pm via http://www.xe.com/currencyconverter/

• 1 USD = 0.626 GBP

About Hotels.com

About Hotels.com

Hotels.com is a leading online accommodation booking website with more than 240,000 properties around the world, ranging from international chains and all-inclusive resorts to local favourites and bed & breakfasts, together with all the information needed to book the perfect stay. Hotels.com benefits from one of the largest hotel contracting teams in the industry, negotiating the best rates for its customers, and offers frequent sales, special deals and promotions. Regular customer e-newsletters provide exclusive offers and advance warning of up-coming sales. There are more than seven million reviews on the site from users who have actually stayed in the hotels to ensure customers can make an informed choice when booking. Through its industry-leading loyalty programme Welcome Rewards, customers can earn a free night for every 10 nights stayed at more than 100,000 hotels. Under its Price Match Guarantee, if a customer can find the same deal for less on a prepaid hotel, Hotels.com will refund the difference. Travellers can book online or by contacting one of the multilingual call centres. Apps for mobile phones and tablets have been downloaded more than 25 million times and can be accessed at http://www.hotels.com/deals/mobile enabling customers to book on the go with access to 20,000 last minute deals. Follow Hotels.com on Facebook at facebook.com/Hotels.comUK, on Twitter at @HotelsdotcomUK and YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/HotelsEU. Hotels.com is part of Expedia Inc., the largest online travel company in the world with an extensive portfolio that includes some of the industry's best-known brands.

For global news, please follow the Hotels.com PR team on Twitter @hotelsdotcomPR.

SOURCE Hotels.com