A football fan has revealed he’s set to travel to Wembley via Menorca to watch his beloved Sunderland’s playoff final because it's cheaper than getting the train or a bus from Newcastle to London.
James Jelly, 33, paid just £51 for plane tickets and an overnight stay in Spain ahead of Sunderland’s big game, after finding a flight from Newcastle to London would have cost him £161.99.
The plane journey to Menorca set him back only £12.50 while the return ticket to Stansted cost just £10.50.
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The die-hard Sunderland supporter said: "It's cheaper than getting the train.
“There's some out there that have been ridiculously priced. I looked up flights from Newcastle to Heathrow and it was £161.99 return and I thought 'I'm not paying that.'
"I looked further down the page and there was a return flight for £23 to Menorca with Ryanair so I thought why not.
"My mates were saying they had paid £200-£300 for their trip. The coach was £40. My fights were half the price and I get a nice little morning in Spain. It's the perfect weekend."
The purchasing manager flies from Newcastle to Menorca on Thursday at 4:00pm and lands into London at 6:00pm on Friday for the bargain price of £23.
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He explained that he’s only paying £28 for his hostel room and has organised a lift from London Stansted airport to Trafalgar square from another fan - and a ride home after the match.
The football fan's ticket to the highly-anticipated game, where his team will face Wycombe, was just £55 meaning the whole weekend has cost him under £100, almost £62 less than what his return ticket from Newcastle would have cost.
He added: "I'm really excited for it. They stand a good chance of winning, the feeling this time is that we will go up.
"Sunderland have been allocated more tickets so we'll have by far the biggest backing and we're the favourites.
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“But, it won't be a wasted trip down even if we do lose, I'll have a day in Spain."
James added that his cost-saving mission was partially spurred on by his impending wedding to fiancée Victoria Stewart, 34, in August.
He concluded: "She thinks I'm crazy." One man’s crazy is another’s ingenuity. Bravo!
Lisa McLoughlin