If you have dreamed of luxury stays in the best hotel rooms around the world, this is almost certainly the time to treat yourself.

According to Hotels.com, which tracks real prices paid per room for 78,000 venues across 13,000 locations worldwide, the top-end hotels are seeing their rates tumble so fast that average prices are back to 2004 levels.

In its league table of top value, Hotels.com puts Lisbon, Marrakech, Melbourne, Mexico City, Pisa, Sao Paolo and Toronto as the best buys.

With air fares also plunging in the economic downturn, the next eight weeks before the Christmas peak season offer some spectacular long-haul bargains.

The website dealchecker.co.uk launched a World Flight Sale this week, with New York returns from £223, Dubai from £263, Cape Town from £426 and Sydney from £599.

Thomson Tailormade (0871 6640273, thomsontailormade.com) has lopped £440 off the brochure price of seven nights’ all-inclusive at four-star Almond Smugglers Cove in St Lucia from November 8, now starting at £699.

Thomson Tailormade has launched a new Worldwide Value programme for 2009-10, with special offers from room upgrades to free-night offers, and revised prices on many tours and safaris.

It offers eight nights’ B&B at the four-star-plus Evason Six Senses in Phuket, Thailand, from £699, saving £430, including Thai Airways flights departing December 3.

As travellers steer clear of eurozone prices, lowcostholidays.com has been adding additional routes to the Caribbean, Mexico, Florida and various US cities, including New York, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Boston, along with a wide choice of UK regional departures and new destinations like Australia, South Africa, Dubai and Qatar.

The website’s lead prices include £685 for seven nights’ all-inclusive at a four-star resort in Jamaica, and seven nights’ all-inclusive from £975 (saving £412) in Barbados, ex-Manchester from December 6.

* Until the full itinerary for next summer’s World Cup in South Africa fully takes shape with the draw on December 4, football fans who book now have to hope that they are in some of the right places for the biggest matches.

A standard package from Thomas Cook Sport (020 87392360, thomascooksport.com) from £2,499 includes guaranteed tickets to see at least one England group stage match, along with flights, transfers and accommodation.

However, there is already considerable demand for the 35-night package which enables fans to see every England match.

From £8,200 (two sharing), it includes guaranteed Category 3 tickets to every round of the tournament, including all England’s group games and the knockout stages, return flights, and an chance to enjoy some of the best hotels in Johannesburg and Cape Town.

Thomas Cook will also offer short-break packages to include accommodation (from B&B to five-star hotels), transport and event tickets for the London Olympics and the Paralympic Games in 2012. Packages will go on sale sometime during 2011.

Meanwhile, if you register before December 20 this year, at a Thomas Cook store or online at thomascook.com, you will be entered in a draw to win an exclusive family weekend in London, including a tour of the Olympic Park.