Bank Holiday Weekend Breaks Without the Traffic

A bank holiday gives most people a three-day weekend, which is genuinely enough for a change of scene. It also puts a large part of the country on the road at the same time, which is why so many bank holiday trips are remembered mainly for the journey. Almost all of that is avoidable with two decisions: where you go, and when you set off.

Choose places that absorb a crowd

Large landscapes beat small honeypots

A big, dispersed area swallows visitors; a single famous village does not. The Yorkshire Dales, Northumberland and rural Shropshire will feel busy in the car parks and empty half a mile beyond them. A well-known small town on a fine bank holiday feels busy everywhere at once.

Consider the second-choice county

Shropshire rather than the Cotswolds, north Devon rather than south Cornwall, Norfolk rather than the south coast, Hexham and the Tyne valley rather than the central Lakes. These are not consolation prizes. They are simply less famous.

Travel at the right time

Leave Friday evening or Saturday afternoon

The worst outbound period is Saturday morning. Leaving late on Friday, or after lunch on Saturday, avoids the majority of it. Coming home, Monday morning is far easier than Monday afternoon.

Or start a day late

If you can take the Tuesday off instead of travelling on the Friday, you get a quieter road in both directions and better availability at the other end.

Which bank holidays suit what

Easter

A four-day weekend and the first real trip of the year, but the weather is genuinely unpredictable. Pick somewhere with indoor options, such as York, Bath or Ludlow.

Early and late May

The best of the group for the countryside. Long days, everything open, and the crowds not yet at summer levels.

Late August

The busiest, and the one where choosing an unfashionable area pays off most. Note that Scotland does not share the same bank holidays as England and Wales, so a trip north can land on an ordinary working weekend.

Three days is a specific length

Do not treat it as a short week

The common error is to plan a bank holiday weekend as though it were a holiday with a day removed. It is not: two of the three days have travel in them. Realistically you have one full day plus two half days, and an itinerary built for three full days will feel rushed from the first morning.

Stay in one place

Moving accommodation mid-weekend costs a morning and an afternoon, which is most of what you have. Pick one base and accept that you will not see everything within an hour of it.

Consider going somewhere close

An hour and a half from home in an area you barely know is a better use of three days than four hours each way to somewhere famous. Most people have unexplored country far nearer than they assume.

Practical points

Two-night minimums are common on bank holiday weekends and three-night minimums are not unusual, so a single night is often unavailable at any price. Book the accommodation well ahead but leave the itinerary loose, because the weather will decide most of it anyway.

See also our last minute breaks and city breaks without flying.