If you were trying to book a late, cheap flight at only 24 hours' notice, what's available?
For example...we looked at flying to Malaga at just one days' notice - flying from any airport or airline in the UK.
Local travel agents
Local travel agents tend to be a reassuring place and, because they buy so many flights, they can negotiate their own prices with the airlines, so you should get a better deal. Result: a return flight that costs £106 per person including security charges.
Airlines that sell flights online
There are a number of no-frills airlines where costs are reduced by booking online, thus cutting out the travel agents' commission. Easyjet sells the largest proportion of their seats online, but only sell Easyjet flights. The cheapest price quoted here involved travelling out and back at antisocial hours (in this case, 3.30am and 1.30am respectively).
If you're among the first to go online when the flights first become available, you might be able to get it for half price, so it may pay to book early. Result: a return flight that costs £110 per person including all taxes.
Websites that sell flights online
Many other websites offer flights from all sorts of carriers. ebookers, for instance, buy up huge ticket allocations from airlines and then sell them online. Our favorite is Opodo as all of the airlines are instantly available. The result of this should be low prices because the airline gives them big discounts and it's always a scheduled flight. Charter flights tend to suffer more delays and this can be important to some people. The overheads are low because you do all the booking yourself on the internet. Result: a return direct scheduled flight that costs £109 including tax (outward travelling at 3pm).
Teletext
Every morning tour operators pump out special deals and you may find prices here that you won't find elsewhere. Using remote control and phone, in one hour we had found a return flight from Gatwick on Monarch Airlines. Result: a return flight at a cost of £89.
On standby
If you don't have two weeks to book and you want a last-minute deal, you could try one more place. If you're prepared to get to Flight Line at Gatwick airport at 5am and pay cash, you stand the chance of getting a flight for as little as £65. It's a one-way ticket though - the Flight Line International shop in Malaga will sell you one to come back - and you can stay as long as you want. It's a standby ticket, so there's a slim chance that you could be waiting around a while for a flight with a spare seat.