The Ultimate Guide on How to Budget and Plan for a Three Day Weekend
Looking for a way to budget for a three day weekend? If you are planning a girls trips, a family getaway, a romantic couples weekend, or simply a weekend to yourself, this guide is perfect to help you budget for your travel plans. This guide will help all budget levels. We also suggest when to start booking your trip depending on time of year and location.
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Budget and Plan for a Three Day Weekend Within Driving Distance of Home
Begin Planning Time Frame: Due to flight booking, start planning your weekend 3 to 4 months in advance. If you are wanting a more budget friendly three day weekend, then look for non holiday weekends and avoid summer months. Prices increase during these times due to higher demand.
Booking Hotel: Plan to book a hotel at least 2 months in advance. Hotels in downtown locations are often more expensive than in the suburbs outside of big cities or towns. Our travel guides highlight price levels of different locations. Plan to spend between $120 – $300 per night in most places. This guide takes into account 2 total nights and three days in cities. We like to use booking.com (linked here) we booking our hotels. They are compeitively priced and easy to use platform.
Restaurant Reservations: Most large cities are going to require lunch and dinner reservations, especially during popular times of year. It is recommended to book your reservations 30 to 60 days in advance. If you are looking to dine at a special restaurant then we recommended checking in with that restaurants website on when reservations open. Set a calendar reminder on your phone to book on the day when reservations are released so you are guaranteed to have a dinner reservations at that restaurant.
Entertainment Tickets: If you are looking to go to museums, national park sites, private gardens, or other entertaining venues then plan to book about 6 weeks in advance to guarantee a ticket and sometimes a specific times lot.
Budget and Plan for a Three Day Weekend with a Flight
Booking the Flight: Domestic Flights in the United States are best booked three months or 90 days in advance. The closer you get to your desired date the more expensive flight tickets will become. This is due to airlines already having sold their allotted tickets for a lower ticket tier. When looking at flights, we enjoy using booking.com (linked here) for our actual flight booking. Flights typically range from $200 to $500 dollars depending on
Budget Planner for Two People
| Expense | Budget |
| Hotel / Home Stay (For Two Nights) | $300 – $600 |
| Breakfast | $50 – $150 |
| Lunch | $100 – $250 |
| Dinner | $200 – $400 |
| Entertainment | $50 – $150 |
| Gas (If Applicable) | $50 – $100 |
| Flight (If Applicable) | $200 – $500 |
| Total Costs Without Flight | $750 – $1,650 |
| Total Costs With Flight | $1,150 – $2,150 |
Recap of Trip Planning
Here we provide a brief recap of when you should start planning and booking your three day weekend.
| Activity | When to Start Planning Before Trip |
| Start Planning | 3 to 4 months |
| Hotel Booking | 2 months |
| Restaurant Booking | 1 to 2 months |
| Entertaininment Booking | 6 weeks |
| Flight Booking | 3 months |
Hope you found this guide on how to Budget and Plan for a Three Day Weekend helpful!
