Who doesn’t love a little weekend away? Even when you’re saving for a house or other things, it’s still nice to get away every now and then, and it doesn’t have to break the bank!

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So, we’re giving you a breakdown of a 2-night stay in Poland that Chelsea and Tom* recently took as a couple on a budget but still looking to experience a new city. After a little research, they decided on Krakow because of its budget-friendly cost, beautiful views, and historical opportunities. Let’s see how they managed to keep the costs down. 

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Choosing The Destination

The first thing to decide is the destination. The couple already had a weekend in mind (Friday-Sunday), so they started looking into cheap places to visit—that included flights, accommodation, activities, and eating/drinking. Some places may be cheap to get to but surprise you when you’re there, so a bit of research goes a long way. A few examples they found were Gdansk, Riga, Talin, and Cologne, but they settled on Krakow. 

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Flights

With dates already in mind, the two knew they wanted to make the most of the weekend, so an early flight out and a late flight in would be best. An important thing to note is that they booked outbound and inbound flights with two different companies. This was after looking on Skyscanner and individual company websites, so make sure to browse before going with what you initially see as the best deal. 

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Those flights were relatively reasonable (£125 each), but as we know, companies always try to ramp up the cost at the checkout. So, to keep those costs down, the couple didn’t choose seats (spoiler - they were sat together both ways anyway, so that’s a risk that is usually worth taking, especially for shorter flights) and only kept the assigned baggage - 1x carry-on. There are a lot of bags available that are the exact dimensions for a carry-on, are not that expensive, and fit in a lot, so it is worth investing in for £30 or so! 

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Accommodation

The two opted for a hotel rather than an AirBnb, as with all the extra costs, an AirBnb turned out to be much more expensive. They also noted that having breakfast included would have cost them much more, as when they arrived, the food was extremely cheap anyway. Hotel — £150 each. 

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The Trip

With the average price of a pint being £3-4, the cost of food and drink was definitely the main perk of the trip. Spending around £250 in total for three days (for two - including 3x meals out, snacks, alcohol, entry to bars, a day trip to Auschwitz, museum entry and transport costs), the budget was overestimated. 

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So, if you’re looking for a budget-friendly weekend away, Krakow could be the one to beat! While the flights were slightly more than other destinations, the cost of most other things totally made it worth it.

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Total Cost: around £400pp

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*Names have been changed for anonymity purposes

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