The group chat has finally agreed on a date. Now you just need somewhere that does bottomless brunch, a proper dance floor, a show that makes you cry laughing and a bed that doesn't cost a week's wages.
Good news. You don't need to fly anywhere to have the girls weekend away of the year. The UK is packed with cities that do cheap fizz, drag queens, karaoke and nights out that end with chips at 3am, all for a lot less than a hen do in Marbella.
These are the best cheap girls weekend breaks in the UK, with where to stay, where to brunch, where to dance and what it will roughly cost. Whether you call it a girls trip, a ladies weekend away or a girly weekend with your best mates, every one of these will deliver.
Girls weekend away UK: the 8 best spots at a glance
Destination | Best for | Rough cost per person |
|---|---|---|
Blackpool | Drag cabaret, rollercoasters, cheap B&Bs | £150 to £200 |
Glasgow | Karaoke rooms, comedy, the friendliest locals | £150 to £210 |
Liverpool | Bottomless brunch and a city built for partying | £160 to £230 |
Newcastle | Party brunches and a legendary night out | £170 to £240 |
Cardiff | Drag bingo brunch and dancing on the bar | £170 to £240 |
Manchester | Darts brunch, cabaret and Canal Street | £180 to £250 |
Brighton | Drag bingo, cabaret and the seaside | £180 to £260 |
Bristol | Drag brunch, then a party on a boat | £180 to £250 |
The rough costs cover two nights in a shared room or flat, one brunch, one show and a couple of nights out. Travel isn't included.
1. Blackpool: Drag Queens, Rollercoasters and Cheap B&Bs
Blackpool doesn't do subtle, and that's exactly why it's one of the best girls weekend breaks in the country. It's loud, it's cheap and it's been throwing parties for over a century.
Where to stay: Blackpool B&Bs are about as cheap as UK beds get. The Derby Hotel in North Shore lists rooms from about £28 per person a night, breakfast included, and guests rave about the hosts. Book triples and family rooms so the whole gang stays together.
The big night: Funny Girls on Dickson Road is the reason to come. It's been Blackpool's legendary drag cabaret since 1994, in a gorgeous Art Deco theatre, with big dance numbers, filthy comedy and a host who will absolutely pick on someone in your group. Tickets run from £10 midweek to £34 on a Saturday, and Saturdays sell out first. Add the three course pre-show dinner at Garbo's for £29.85. The Christmas show, Sleigh Queens, runs from 12 November to 3 January.
By day: Scream your way round Pleasure Beach and ride The Big One with your eyes shut. Book online, because advance tickets are much cheaper than the £60 gate price.
Drinks and dancing: After the show, head for the bars and clubs around Queen Street and Talbot Square. Expect cheesy anthems, cheap rounds and a lot of feather boas.
Rough cost: £150 to £200 per person for two nights.
2. Glasgow: Karaoke, Comedy and the Best Craic in Britain
Glasgow is cheap, it's buzzing and the locals will happily adopt your whole group for the night. If you want a girly weekend away where you never once feel like a tourist, this is the one.
Where to stay: Motel One Glasgow is right next to Glasgow Central station. It's stylish, it's spotless and rooms start from around £65 a night, so about £33 each when you share.
Brunch: One thing to know first. Scottish law bans unlimited drinks deals (MSHB Legal), so Glasgow brunches come with a set number of drinks. Revolución de Cuba in Merchant City does a proper fiesta brunch with a dish and four drinks from £35, or £37.50 on Saturdays. Your Sunday morning will thank you.
The big night: Book a private room at Supercube on Bath Street. There are seven karaoke rooms for groups of 3 to 40 and over 59,000 songs, so nobody escapes their Mamma Mia moment. For a laugh first, The Stand on Great Western Road has stand up every night.
Drinks and dancing: Start under the fairy lights on Ashton Lane in the West End, then move to Merchant City for cocktails. Sauchiehall Street is where the clubs are when you're ready to go big.
Rough cost: £150 to £210 per person for two nights.
3. Liverpool: Bottomless Brunch Capital of the North
Liverpool is built for a girls weekend. The city centre is compact, the bars are everywhere and Scousers know how to throw a party better than anyone.
Where to stay: Staycity Aparthotels Liverpool City Centre on Duke Street has one, two and three bedroom apartments, so the whole group can share one flat. You get a kitchen for pre-drinks and you can walk to everything on this list.
Brunch: The Brunch & Cocktail Club, also on Duke Street, does 90 minutes of unlimited drinks, a main and a live DJ for £42.50, every Saturday at 3pm and 5pm. Or book Bam Boo Brunch & Cocktails on Bold Street, one of the city's best loved brunch spots, where 90 minutes of bottomless drinks is £50.
The big night: Hot Water Comedy Club at Blackstock Market is one of the best comedy clubs in the country, with shows five nights a week and tickets from about £18. Book it for Saturday, then hit the town straight after.
Drinks and dancing: Concert Square and Seel Street are the heart of the night, packed with bars and clubs that go until late. Squeeze in a singalong at The Cavern Club on Mathew Street too.
Rough cost: £160 to £230 per person for two nights.
4. Newcastle: The Wildest Night Out in England
Newcastle's nightlife is legendary, and it's still far cheaper than London. Geordies don't wear coats, and they don't do quiet nights either.
Where to stay: Motel One Newcastle on High Bridge is stylish and central. Weekend rooms average around £115, so under £60 each when you share, and The Stand is a few doors down.
Brunch: Manahatta is a glam New York style bar a minute from the station. You get two hours of free-flowing prosecco and cocktails with your food, from £39.95 before 2pm or £44.95 for the party sessions after. For something wilder, the Purple Peacock on Pilgrim Street does a "Drunch" with a stage show, a main and 90 minutes of bottomless drinks, from £49.95 on Saturdays.
The big night: The Stand at 31 High Bridge has comedy every weekend, including an early Saturday show at 4pm. Catch that and you've got the whole night ahead of you.
Drinks and dancing: Go out on the Bigg Market, then stroll Collingwood Street and finish down on the Quayside. It's a rite of passage.
Rough cost: £170 to £240 per person for two nights.
5. Cardiff: Drag Bingo Brunch and Dancing on the Bar
Cardiff is small enough to walk everywhere, cheap enough to go out both nights and loud enough to keep up with any hen do.
Where to stay: Clayton Hotel Cardiff is right on St Mary Street, so you can stumble home from the bars in minutes. Rooms start from around £63 a night, about £32 each when you share. One warning: avoid rugby international weekends, when every bed in the city triples in price.
Brunch: Buff Bingo at District on Greyfriars Road is the one to book. You get a drag host, bingo with prizes, buff butlers, a DJ, a brunch dish and 90 minutes of bottomless drinks for £49.95. Doors open at 1pm and the party runs until 4pm on Saturdays.
The big night: Start with cocktails at Tonight Josephine on Caroline Street, which is open until 2am on Saturdays. Then finish at Coyote Ugly on St Mary Street, where the bar staff dance on the bar and you're very welcome to join them until 3am.
Drinks and dancing: Womanby Street is packed with tiny bars and live music, and St Mary Street is where the big nights end.
Rough cost: £170 to £240 per person for two nights.
6. Manchester: Darts, Cabaret and Canal Street
Manchester has the lot. There are more bars than you could get round in a month and a gay village where everyone is welcome.
Where to stay: Staycity Aparthotels Manchester Piccadilly has one, two and three bedroom apartments a minute from Piccadilly station. Canal Street and the Northern Quarter are both a short walk away.
Brunch: Flight Club on King Street does two hours of prosecco or beer, bottomless pizza and an hour of competitive darts, from £33. There are DJs on Saturdays, and nobody will remember who won.
The big night: Albert's Schloss on Peter Street is an Alpine bier palace with cabaret acts and live music seven nights a week. It's open until 2am, so you can eat, drink and dance in one place.
Drinks and dancing: Bar hop through the Northern Quarter, then head to Canal Street for the best dance floors in the city. Nobody does a Saturday night like Manchester.
Rough cost: £180 to £250 per person for two nights.
7. Brighton: Drag Bingo, Cabaret and the Seaside
Brighton is camp, colourful and right on the beach. It's the ultimate ladies weekend away if you're based in the South.
Where to stay: Maldron Hotel Brighton City Centre is two minutes from the seafront, with rooms from around £74 a night. That's under £40 each when you share, for one of the best rated hotels in town.
Brunch: Buff Bingo runs every Saturday at Revolution Brighton. The full package is a brunch dish, 90 minutes of bottomless drinks, drag queens and bingo for £57.95, or £29.95 if you'd rather buy drinks at the bar.
The big night: The Birdcage on Marine Parade has drag cabaret on Friday and Saturday nights in a gorgeous little venue. For stand up, Komedia on Gardner Street has shows all weekend.
By day: Shop the Lanes, play the arcades on Brighton Palace Pier and eat chips on the pebbles. It's cheap, it's silly and it's perfect hangover medicine.
Rough cost: £180 to £260 per person for two nights.
8. Bristol: Drag Brunch, Then a Party on a Boat
Bristol is cool without trying, with a harbour full of bars and a club on an actual ship.
Where to stay: Novotel Bristol Centre on Victoria Street is a short walk from Temple Meads and the Harbourside. Rooms start from around £59 a night.
Brunch: Blame Gloria on Small Street throws Bristol's best drag brunch. Gloria's Drag Bingo Bottomless Brunch gets you 90 minutes of bottomless drinks, food and drag queens calling the numbers, from £39 on Saturdays or £35 on Sundays. You book with a £10 deposit each and pay the rest on the day.
The big night: Dance on a boat. Thekla is a club on an old cargo ship moored in the harbour, and its Pop Confessional nights are all guilty pleasures and chart hits, with tickets from around £9.
Drinks and dancing: Bar hop down Corn Street, have a drink along the Harbourside and finish on Thekla.
Rough cost: £180 to £250 per person for two nights.
How to Keep Your Girls Weekend Cheap
Skip the packages. Girls weekend packages and hen bundles look easy, but booking the brunch, the show and the beds yourself is almost always cheaper.
Book the brunch and the show first. The best drag brunches and Saturday comedy nights sell out weeks ahead. Lock those in, then plan the rest around them.
Share a flat, not hotel rooms. A self-catering apartment split six ways usually beats three hotel rooms, and the kitchen pays for itself in pre-drinks.
Avoid the big event weekends. Rugby internationals, big concerts and Pride weekends send prices through the roof.
Book trains early. Advance tickets and a railcard can cut your travel in half. Groups of three or more can also save with GroupSave on many routes.
Set a kitty. Everyone puts the same amount in on Friday night, and the rounds come out of that. No awkward maths at 2am.
Girls Weekend Away UK: Quick Questions
Where is the cheapest place for a girls weekend away in the UK?
Blackpool and Glasgow are the cheapest. Blackpool B&Bs start from about £28 a night with breakfast, and Glasgow's brunch deals and cheap rounds keep nights out affordable.
What are the best ladies weekend away ideas in the UK?
Book a drag brunch, catch a comedy show, sing your hearts out at karaoke and dance until close. Liverpool, Newcastle and Brighton let you do all four in one weekend.
What's the best girl weekend getaway in the UK for a hen do?
Newcastle and Liverpool are made for hen dos. Both have dozens of party brunches, compact city centres and nights out that go on until the early hours.
Where's best for a drag brunch on a girls trip in the UK?
Book Blame Gloria in Bristol, Buff Bingo in Cardiff or Brighton, or the Purple Peacock in Newcastle. All four mix bottomless drinks with a proper show.
What about cheap girly weekends away abroad?
If you've got a few extra days and cheap flights, see our guide to the best girls holiday destinations for 2026.
The Bottom Line
The best girls weekend away isn't about how much you spend. It's the brunch that turns into a dance off, the drag queen who drags your mate on stage and the 3am chips on the walk home. Pick a city, book the brunch and get the group chat moving.