Ask any parent what they sort first when a holiday goes in the diary and you'll hear the same two things – flights and hotel. Both locked in early, both paid for, both ticked off months before you pack a bag.

Then there's everything else. The days out, the boat trips, the shows, the bits the kids actually remember. And somehow that's the part we leave until we're in resort in the heat, phone in one hand, ice cream melting in the other, trying to work out what to do tomorrow.

I see it all the time in my work with families in Majorca, and I've been caught out by it on my own holidays too. So my advice is to book your fun before you fly.

The money reason comes first, and it's the one that surprises people. Buying each attraction separately, ticket by ticket, whether in resort or online, is the most expensive way to do it. Bundle a few of the big ones together and the saving across a week of days out for a family of four can run into hundreds of pounds.

That saving is in the bundle itself, so the sooner you sort it the sooner the holiday budget is set and working in your favour, rather than something you're guessing at over breakfast.

If you're looking at an October half term holiday in Majorca, there's a second reason that matters even more than usual, too.

October is a lovely time to take children to the island, as the temperatures are far more comfortable than peak summer, which changes what you can do with your day. In July and August the heat can be intense, and long stretches outside become hard work for little ones, and for the grown-ups too. In October you get warm, manageable days where a boat trip or a round of mini golf is a pleasure rather than an endurance test.

But what families don't always realise is that as October sits outside the high season, that means a lot of attractions scale back their opening times. Fewer operating days and time slots, and less choice across the week.

To give you a real example, Pirates Adventure runs up to five performances a week in August and drops to just two a week in October. That's a big difference, and it means that by leaving it to chance, you might find the day or evening you'd planned around simply isn't running, or the one remaining slot has already gone.

But this isn't only an October point. If you're already thinking about next summer, the same logic applies in reverse. Peak weeks sell out, the best slots go early, and the families who sort their days out in the winter are the ones who land in July with everything booked and nothing left to argue about.

Whether it’s low or high season, getting your activities sorted before you fly means you actually get to do the things you travelled for, rather than reshuffling your whole trip around what's left.

So to sum up the holiday planning tips I'd pass on to families, it would be:

1) Sketch a loose plan before you go. You don't need a rigid timetable, just a rough sense of which day is the big attraction and which is the beach. It saves you making every decision cold, on the morning, over breakfast, with everyone talking at once.

2) Bundle attractions in advance. Mix and match to build the week that suits your family, and know what's on the agenda before you land. It saves you money on the individual ticket prices and it takes a lot of decisions off your plate while you're out there.

3) Build in proper downtime. It's tempting to pack the week, but younger children especially need slower days between the big ones. Save the big-hitters such as theme parks or family raves for the days everyone has energy, and opt for a gentle boat trip or a relaxed round of mini golf for the quieter ones.

And if the planning feels like a lot, it's worth working with someone who can map it out for you. Platforms that bundle the island's family attractions in one place, like Majorca Family Tickets where I work, take the legwork off your plate and the guesswork out of the pricing.

We're part of the Globo Balear Entertainment Group, which has been building family entertainment in Majorca since 1985, so we know the island's attractions from the inside. And once families have picked the attractions they want, they check out and we contact them to schedule their experiences.

The holiday itself is the reward for busy families, but the planning shouldn't feel like homework. Do a little of it before you fly and you'll land knowing the fun is already sorted, the budget's under control, and the only thing left to decide is which beach you’re starting with.