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Are you a Weekender?

Are you a Weekender?

Happy New Year everyone!

I hope you’re well and enjoyed the Christmas festivities.

It feels strange for it all to be over so suddenly. One minute we’re knee deep in mince pies, fairy lights and panic buying presents. The next minute we’re all detoxing and dieting, saving money and digging out our running shoes.

I’m stuck somewhere in the middle and I’m wearing my gym kit while I hoover up all the chocolates, pies and wine that are still lurking around the house. It’s got to be done!

If you’re anything like me, this time of year signals one thing and one thing only – it’s time to start planning holidays (or vacations if you’re reading from across the Pond!)

January is holiday planning season and it’s such an exciting time of year.

I’m going to be having a huge focus on weekend breaks on The Travel Hack. You may have already noticed the ‘Weekenders’ tab at the top of the page?

This slight shift is after reading the results from my recent reader survey. I was absolutely amazed by the amount of people who responded to the survey so a big thank you again to everyone who did.

One of the main themes that came from the survey was that you all love weekend breaks. Most of us are working 40+ hours per week and want to make the most of the limited time off we have.

To start us off, I’ve put together 52 weekend away ideas that are perfect if you’re travelling from the UK.

So, I’d like to invite you to join me to be a Weekender.

Are you a weekender?

Weekenders are people who don’t spend those precious Saturdays and Sundays lazing on the sofa. They wouldn’t dream of spending Saturday afternoon in Tesco – have you ever been to Tesco on a Saturday afternoon? It’s actually hell on earth. Friday nights aren’t for kebabs and shit TV and Sunday afternoons aren’t for ironing.

Weekends are for travelling!

The weekends last for two short days so it’s time to start making the most of them!

Weekenders are the kind of people who slip out of the office early on a Friday after working their arses off all week. They’ll be pulling a stylish little suitcase behind them and will have the smug Weekender Swagger as they tell their colleagues where they’re going this weekend. Their colleagues jealously wonder why their weekends are never as exciting and say things like, ‘Wow, you’re so lucky.’

But Weekenders aren’t lucky. Weekenders have got their shit together and they booked this months ago – probably during a sale and for a bargain price.

Weekenders live another life from Friday afternoon until Sunday night. They jet off to exotic destinations, often travelling to places other people have never heard of. They stay in boutique hotels, dine in quirky restaurants, explore forgotten cities, hike across mountains, swim in the sea, meet interesting people and learn new things – all before returning back to their homes and their jobs on a Sunday evening.

Weekenders aren’t rich. Weekenders are just savvy. They know how to find a good deal and they know they might need to compromise on their flight time in order to stay in that gorgeous hotel.

One weekend they might jet off to Paris, but the following weekend they’ll be staying closer to home. Maybe they’re going camping or they’ve found a cheap Airbnb pad. They might be exploring something new in their home town or taking a short road trip to somewhere they’ve never been before. Or they might have saved up their points to score cheap flights to New York!

One thing a Weekender will never do is waste their weekend. Oh no. Weekends are short, weekends are precious, so whatever you do, don’t spend them in Tesco.

If you’d like some Weekender inspiration, check out these posts:

The 12 best weekend escapes to take in 2016

How to travel more with the #Take12Trips Challenge

Daphne

Saturday 9th of January 2016

Great angle Monica! Weekends are the best, even more so when you combine them with extra days of on a Bank Holiday. Here's to weekenders!

Amy

Saturday 2nd of January 2016

Love this post, Mon. Although I'm obviously a full time traveller at the moment, I totally agree with making the most of your weekends and that you can do so much more with them than people think. After working all week, they're definitely deserved. xx

TheTravelHack

Sunday 3rd of January 2016

Definitely. You need the break after a week in work. Lazing on the sofa all weekend sounds relaxing but I never feel like I've had a break if I don't do anything all weekend.

Lauren

Saturday 2nd of January 2016

Ah this was SO me in college... Ventured out as often as possible ?

TheTravelHack

Sunday 3rd of January 2016

I was mostly in the pub while I was in collage. Definitely making it up for it now!

Leigh Anne

Saturday 2nd of January 2016

YEP. I'm lucky to have two 3-day weekends built into my schedule every month (the other two weekends I work Saturday or Sunday so it evens out.) I have 4 trips booked for 2016 so far and two of them don't require any vacation days - in fact I'm hopping on a bus to DC this Friday. LOVE being a weekender!

TheTravelHack

Sunday 3rd of January 2016

Have a great time in DC! You're so lucky to have that schedule. I'd happily work a few Saturdays and Sundays to get two long weekenders a month!

Danielle @ EscapingEssex

Saturday 2nd of January 2016

I am definitely a weekender! Right down to the pretty little cabin bag and smug weekender swagger as I stroll out of the office on a Friday night! Although saying this... it's now Saturday and I'm sitting in bed reading blogs (that's still being a weekender right... it's research for future weekends... *shifty eyes*)

Danielle / www.escapingessex.com

TheTravelHack

Sunday 3rd of January 2016

On January 2nd it's definitely acceptable to be sat in bed reading blogs. That's what the holiday season is for - to start planning all those weekenders.