Brits’ best weekends are less than two hours from home, survey says

On average just, people surveyed said their favourite destination is just one hour and 56 minutes from their homes.

Despite this, the study showed that people are less tolerant when it comes to putting up with the unpredictable British weather. Great weather is one of the biggest contributing factors to Brits having a great weekend, with the ideal temperature revealed to be 21 degrees centigrade - a few degrees cooler than the European average of 24 degrees.

On average we spend £180 on a great weekend, with men spending 23% more than women to have a great time, averaging £200 vs £163. It seems the Northern Irish spend the most cash at £250, nearly £100 more than people in the North East of England (£152)2.

Partners are the top choice for Brits when asked who they’d like to spend a weekend with to make it great (43%), whilst spending the weekend with friends (21%) is preferred to spending the weekend with the kids (18%). Brits are 50% more likely to choose a weekend away with their pets than their parents. The French are almost twice as likely as Brits to spend a great weekend with a secret lover. When it comes to the ideal celebrity companion, comedian James Corden is the top choice for Brits, followed by Kelly Brook and Jeremy Clarkson.

Almost three quarters (72%) of people aged 18-24 think seeing at least one friend makes for a great weekend. However, it’s the 35-44 year olds who are the most gregarious, wanting to see four friends to have a great weekend.

In contrast, over half of Brits (56%) say they don’t need to see any friends to have a great weekend. Forty-five to 54 year olds are the most anti-social, with 67% suggesting they’d happily spend the time alone.

“Sometimes we assume that you need to travel far away to somewhere exotic in order to have a perfect weekend, but our research has shown that Brits actually don’t feel the need to venture too far away at all to have a good time. It’s can be easy to sometimes forget that jumping in the car for a short drive can still provide a change of scenery and the opportunity to try something new, without the hassle of flying abroad.” says Nina Bell, Managing Director for the United Kingdom at Avis Budget Group. “At Budget, we believe that travelling by car gives people the freedom to try new things, be spontaneous and have more fun. We want to help people have more great weekends.”

The Budget #GreatWeekend research seeks to identify what it is that makes the best weekends and encourage people to have more of them.

What does a great weekend cost?

Northern Ireland: £250

London: £201

Wales: £194

South West: £187

Scotland: £185

North West: £178

South East: £175

East of England: £173

West Midlands: £171

East Midlands: £169

Yorkshire and Humber: £154

North East: £152