The Balearic Islands top a list of 17 popular destinations rated as good value for a family holiday.
A Post Office survey of more than 1,000 parents found that nine-in-ten believe that the cost of eating out, drinks and other expenses were an important factor when deciding where to go on holiday.
This was almost as many as those who took the cost of international flights or other transport into consideration (91%). Two-thirds (64%) also took the strength or weakness of the pound into consideration.
Spanish resorts came top for value with 88% naming the Balearic Islands, 82% the Canary Islands and 81% the Spanish mainland.
Resort costs have dropped by around 16% since last year in Majorca and Menorca, according to recent research for the Post Office Holiday Costs Barometer.
Greece, the US, Bulgaria, Thailand and Portugal also earned good value ratings from seven-in-ten or more of the parents surveyed.
However, Turkey and Croatia both lost ground on their positions a year ago.
A total of 84% of parents who had visited Turkey before rated it good value at that time but this has now fallen to 67%. Similarly, 68% rated Croatia good value in 2014 but that has dropped to 61%, one of the lowest ratings in this year’s survey.
More than half of the survey sample rated France good value, although its 52% score was only a marginal improvement on a year ago when there was a 50/50 split between those who thought it good or bad value. At that time it was the lowest rated destination in the Post Office Travel Money survey but that position now goes to Dubai.
Only 51% of parents who had visited Dubai thought it represented good value and perceptions of value were also poor among those who had never been to the Emirate. Just 44% believed it would offer good value.
By contrast, almost twice as many (83%) thought Bulgaria would offer family value. Croatia (83%) and Turkey (80%) also fared better with these parents than among those who had visited the countries before.
Overspending is still widespread once families get to their holiday destination. Parents budgeted an average of £715 to pay for meals and other resort costs on their last trip abroad, a 12.6% year-on-year rise, but only a quarter stuck to this – a five percentage point fall on the previous year.
More than half of families (53%) bust their budget by an average of £219, a 30% overspend. Over a fifth of families (22%) never set a holiday budget, preferring to spend what they like.
Andrew Brown, of Post Office Travel Money, said: “Cost is bound to be the major factor for most parents planning a family holiday abroad and it is encouraging to see the high level of awareness about the importance of factoring in resort prices to calculate the overall budget.
“The good news for holidaymakers is that prices have tumbled in many European destinations thanks to a combination of improved exchange rates and lower prices in resorts.”