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UK’s top 10 most affordable travel destinations

Join us as we unveil the top affordable travel destinations for your next getaway.

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      What’s better than a UK holiday break?

      How about a Top Ten affordable UK holiday break! Summer is the time to get out and see the best that the UK has to offer, so LNER has partnered with Hotels.com to bring you the Top Ten destinations for affordable holiday breaks.

      Starting with the UK's 100 most populated towns and cities, we looked at the average hotel price per night, the expected cost of a meal out, the typical cost for coffee, drink, and local transport, and the number of free museums in each destination.

      We then weighted these data against the population to generate a final ranking score.

      1. Hartlepool

      2. Hull*

      3. Docaster*

      4. West Bromwich

      5. Darlington*

      6. Harlow

      7. Gloucester

      8. Burnley

      9. Hastings

      10. Middlesbrough*

      *LNER destinations

      1. Hartlepool

      Securing the top spot as the “UK’s Most Affordable Travel Destination” is Hartlepool – a popular destination in England’s North East famous for its seafaring history.

      Combining 7th century history with modern amenities and attractions, Hartlepool offers a lot to do in a compact, easily walkable area, with a per night hotel price starting from £92.16.

      Hotels in Hartlepool with Hotels.com

      Hartlepool offers many activities for those budget-conscious travellers ensuring no shortage of fun to be had. Free things to do include taking a tour of the HMS Trincomalee, visiting the National Museum of the Royal Navy in Hartlepool, and exploring the expansive Summerhill Country Park with its ponds, BMX track, and climbing boulders.

      Food and drink are also affordable – £11.45 for a meal out compared to a £14.50 average, and £3.50 for a pint compared to £4.30 making Hartlepool the number one spot for affordable city breaks in our study.

      2. Hull

      Coming in at a close second is Hull, which scored well across the board for affordability.

      Hull’s average hotel cost is about one-third of London's £306.64 per night at around £110, while public transport is the second most affordable at just £2 for a one-way ticket ensuring you can save your pennies for fun activities.

      Hotels in Hull with Hotels.com

      Hull boasts an array of free activities including the Streetlife Museum of Transport, the Hull Maritime Museum, the Hull and East Riding Museum, and the Hands On History Museum. The Humber Bridge, just outside of Hull, is also free to walk and cycle across, providing amazing views of the Humber Estuary and a great free activity.

      For an affordable spot for lunch head over to East Park which is considered the best park in Hull and the perfect backdrop for a picnic and a day of fun.

      The Hands On History Museum is particularly popular with children – its three galleries include 450 items of historic costume and accessories, an interactive Victorian experience, and even a 2,600-year-old mummy!

      Travelling by train to Hull means no traffic, motorways, or parking to worry about, and 70% greener than travelling by car!

      3. Doncaster

      With an overall score just shy of 76 out of 100, Doncaster is another UK destination that offers great value places to stay and affordable things to do.

      Some of the best free things to do include Cusworth Hall, Minster Church of Saint George, Stainforth Force, and Drakeholes – and you can get to Doncaster by train easily and in comfort with LNER.

      Hotels in Doncaster with Hotels.com

      Another must-visit is the DANUM Gallery, Library and Museum which is free to visit and is sure to spark curiosity, inspiration and imagination for all ages.

      After a day full of exploring, Doncaster offers the most affordable meal out of all the locations analysed at £10, as well as a top five rating placing for affordable coffee at £2.63 ensuring you can stay well-fed and caffeinated.

      4. West Bromwich

      Coming in fourth, for the sheer amount of free museums, West Bromwich is a charming market town with plenty to offer for an affordable city break option.

      The Oak House Museum is a stand-out free attraction – built around the year 1620, this yeoman farmer's house includes 17th-century furniture, "history lessons given by talking barrels", and a children's playground.

      West Brom ranks fourth in value for prices per night at £101.87 – saving you nearly £35 on the average rate of £134.59 – and is only seven miles away from Birmingham if you want to combine your local stay with a big city adventure!

      Hotels in West Bromwich with Hotels.com

      5. Darlington

      Darlington comes in at number five of affordable destinations in our study. With a variety of free and affordable attractions, great value for food and drink and reasonable accommodation prices, Darlington is a great choice for budget travellers.

      As well as being close to the 841 square mile Yorkshire Dales National Park, other unique doorstop attractions include a railway museum called Head of Steam (home to Stephenson’s ‘Locomotion No.1’), a historic pumping station, and a nearby birds of prey experience. Head over to Thorton Hall Gardens to roam the grounds and admire the flowers, rain or shine it is the perfect afternoon activity.

      For those who enjoy a good night out, Darlington ranked third for the price of its drinks, pulling in at a respectable £3. There's also plenty to see and do after dark at the Darlington Hippodrome music, theatre and entertainment venue.

      Explore good value fares on LNER’s trains to Darlington.

      Travelling to Darlington can be a breeze, especially when you book through LNER with no booking fees.

      Hotels in Darlington with Hotels.com

      6. Harlow

      Harlow, ranking sixth in our most affordable destinations, is a joy to wander, with over one-third of the district maintained as parkland or fields containing public footpaths.

      There are also more than 100 public sculptures to explore, alongside the Harlow Museum, Parndon Mill, and the free Harlow Pets Corner where you can say hello to reindeer, alpacas, black pigs, and more!

      As one of the smallest towns by population in our study, Harlow offers the second cheapest coffee – £2.50 against a £3.10 UK average – plus a range of affordable drinks and hotels to choose from.

      Hotels in Harlow with Hotels.com

      7. Gloucester

      Gloucester is the home of cheese rolling, great value meals out, and affordable local transport to get you to and from a wealth of fun activities.

      Gloucester is the perfect spot for film buffs with the local cathedral being used as a location in the Harry Potter films, as well as from Sherlock and Doctor Who.

      There’s also The Tailor of Gloucester House dedicated to the author Beatrix Potter, the Nature in Art gallery featuring art inspired by the natural world, and a variety of churches from across the ages.

      Looking for something more adventurous? Gloucester also offers stand-up paddleboarding, dry slope skiing and snowboarding, and even Ninja Warrior. And for around just £123.57 a night in a local hotel, you'll be able to stay longer to enjoy it all.

      Hotels in Gloucester with Hotels.com

      8. Burnley

      Burnley is a small town just 21 miles north of Manchester offering affordable food and drink as well as a variety of good value activities, earning it spot eight in our study.

      Affordable things to do in the area include two stately homes with galleries to explore and two local museums including the world’s only surviving steam-driven cotton weave. Visitors can also check out Thompson Park’s boating lake and miniature railway for a fun afternoon.

      Burnley ranks highly for affordability if you’re looking for a morning coffee or evening drink- £2.50 and £2.64 respectively. Or if you’re looking for a tipple that’s a bit more unique, be sure to try ‘bene and hot’.

      With LNER you can travel to Burnley from the below destinations with only one change, result!

      Hotels in Burnley with Hotels.com

      9. Hastings

      The southernmost town in our Top Ten, Hastings, is best known for William The Conqueror, smuggling and being home to Europe’s largest beach-based fishing fleet.

      The Old Town is perfect for a wander, with plenty of coffee shops and pubs with art and live music. If you time the tides right, you may even be able to walk out and see the wreck of the Amsterdam!

      Other free things to do in Hastings include a shipwreck museum, the Hastings Lifeboat Station Visitors Centre, and – of course – the pier. All of these attractions are easily walkable from any town centre hotel, which will cost you on average £113.58 - £20 per night less than the UK average hotel price.

      Hotels in Hastings with Hotels.com
      m_middlesbrough

      10. Middlesbrough

      Rounding off our top ten is Middlesbrough, which scored well with an average nightly hotel price of £113.30, as well as £11.45 for a meal, £3.75 for a drink and £2.63 for a coffee.

      The town is a melting pot of Victorian architecture and industrial heritage, with 129 listed buildings in the local area, the iconic Transporter and Tees Newport Bridges, and several public sculptures to admire.

      Hotels in Middlesbrough with Hotels.com

      Some 'can’t miss' attractions include the famous Transporter Bridge which serves as the perfect backdrop for photos, Teessaurus Park and MIMA (Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art), featuring a variety of galleries and exhibitions.

      Our methodology

      As our data shows, there are plenty of places around the UK for an affordable trip away. And if you’re travelling to any of the destinations above – or visiting another UK hot spot – remember that you can always find the best deals on your hotel stay with Hotels.com.

      In the meantime, LNER's next article will take a look at the best places to travel in the UK with children, with future reports also covering UK destinations that stand out for their luxury, suitability for pets, and eco-friendliness.

      To find the most affordable destinations for travel in the UK we used the average cost of a hotel per night, average cost of a pint of beer, average cost of eating a meal out, cost of public transport in each city, average cost of a coffee and the number of free museums in each destination.

      This led us to a complete guide of the most affordable destinations to travel to in the UK. However, there are plenty of affordable cities not on the list, waiting for you to explore, so why not see what LNER has to offer and take a break in the UK.

      We started by identifying the top 100 most populated cities and towns in the UK. We utilised Hotels.com internal data of the average price of a hotel per night in each location. We also utilised WhichMuseum.co.uk to gather the amount of free museums per location, which was then normalised against population to give an amount per 100,000 people. We gathered the average cost of a coffee, beer, meal out and the cost of transport from Numbeo.com.

      Each metric was then normalised to get a score out of 100. With each city having an average score of 100, they were then ranked with the highest average score being ranked 1st and the lowest average score being ranked 100th.

      Go by train and relax!