Reading Week Trips for UK Students: 7 Cheap Escapes for November 2026

Reading Week is the single best week of the year to be a UK student wanting cheap travel. It falls between October half-term and the Christmas rush, demand collapses, and the airfare APIs we track see European return flights drop 30-50% compared to the same routes a fortnight earlier. November weather still gives you 18-22°C in Lisbon, Athens and Marrakech, while Eastern European capitals layer up but stay walkable. We've costed seven trips from UK university cities that genuinely come in under £150 all-in for 5 days. Some go below £100. Pick the one that matches your reading list.

1. Krakow, Poland — £85 all-in

The default Reading Week destination and for good reason. Ryanair flies from Stansted, Manchester, Edinburgh and Bristol with November returns from £25-£40. Hostels in Kazimierz (the old Jewish quarter) start at £9/night for a dorm bed; private double rooms at the Greg & Tom hostel chain are £40/night. Beer is £2.50 a pint, a hearty pierogi dinner £7.

What to do: Auschwitz-Birkenau day trip (£12 by bus, free entry, 1.5 hrs each way), Wieliczka Salt Mines (£20 entry, 30 mins from city), Wawel Castle (free grounds, £8 castle interior), and the ruin-bar quarter for nightlife. November in Krakow is genuinely cold (3-8°C) so layer up.

Total budget: £25 flight + £45 hostel (5 nights) + £35 food/transport = £105 all-in. The cheapest seriously interesting weekend in Europe.

2. Sofia, Bulgaria — £90 all-in

Sofia is the European capital that still feels like a discovery in 2026. Wizz Air flies from London Luton and Manchester with November returns regularly under £30. Hostels start at £8/night (Hostel Mostel is the backpacker classic, includes free dinner and breakfast).

What to do: Free 2-hour walking tour daily at 11am (tip-based), the Vitosha mountain cable car for £5 (skiing on day-passes from £15 if there's snow), Boyana Church and the Rila Monastery day trip (£25 organised tour). Eat at Made in Home and Hadjidraganov's Houses for traditional Bulgarian at £10-£15 a head with wine.

Total budget: £28 flight + £40 hostel (5 nights) + £40 food/transport = £108 all-in.

3. Lisbon, Portugal — £130 all-in

Slightly pricier but the warmest of the European options — November in Lisbon averages 16-19°C and you'll genuinely want a beach day at Cascais. Easyjet and Ryanair fly from Stansted, Luton, Manchester, Bristol and Edinburgh; November returns from £55-£80.

What to do: Tram 28 (an actual public transport tram that doubles as a city tour, £3 ticket), Belém pastries from Pasteis de Belém (£1.20 each, expect to eat 4), the Sintra day trip (£3 train, £14 Pena Palace entry), Alfama district at sunset, LX Factory for indie shopping. Lisbon hostels are pricier than Eastern Europe — £15-£20/night for a dorm bed. Check out our full Lisbon hotels guide for splurge nights.

Total budget: £65 flight + £75 hostel (5 nights) + £40 food/transport = £180 all-in. Slightly above £150 but the most likeable of the cheap European options.

4. Marrakech, Morocco — £140 all-in

The wildcard. Ryanair from Stansted, Manchester and Bristol, plus easyJet from Luton, with November returns starting at £55. Riad dorms (the traditional courtyard guesthouses) start at £12/night and are an experience in themselves; private singles in a riad are £25-£35.

What to do: Jemaa el-Fnaa souk (free, intense), Bahia Palace and Ben Youssef Madrasa (£8 each), an Atlas Mountains day trip with lunch in a Berber village (£25), tagine dinner at Chez Mado for £9. Three-day desert tour to Merzouga (Sahara) — £85-£110 all-in including 2 nights' camp accommodation. November weather is the best of the year — 22-25°C days, no rain.

Total budget: £55 flight + £60 riad (5 nights) + £45 food + £35 day-trip activities = £195 all-in. Push the budget for the desert trip; otherwise £140 covers Marrakech alone.

5. Bucharest, Romania — £95 all-in

Wizz Air dominates from Luton, with November returns frequently under £30. The Bucharest hostel scene is properly developed — Pura Vida and the Little Bucharest hostels are both well under £10/night.

What to do: Palace of the Parliament tour (£15, the world's heaviest building), Old Town bar crawls (drinks £2-£3), Mogoșoaia Palace day trip (£8 by bus), Therme Bucharest spa (£25 day pass for the largest thermal complex in Europe — properly mind-blowing for the price). For the brave, a 1-day Transylvania trip to Bran Castle (£40 organised tour, 4 hours each way).

Total budget: £28 flight + £40 hostel (5 nights) + £45 food/transport = £113 all-in.

6. Tirana, Albania — £110 all-in

The newest cheap European destination. Wizz Air from Luton, returns from £45-£60 in November. Tirana itself is small and walkable; the real magic is the day trips to Berat (UNESCO Ottoman town, £8 bus) and the Albanian coast at Saranda or Vlorë (£10 bus, sea still swimmable in early November).

What to do: Bunk'Art 2 (£5, Cold War bunker turned museum, surprisingly moving), the Pyramid of Tirana viewing platform (free, recently restored), Skanderbeg Square, and Mount Dajti by cable car (£8 return). Eat at Mullixhiu for traditional Albanian under £15 a head.

Total budget: £50 flight + £45 hostel (5 nights) + £40 food/transport = £135 all-in.

7. Belfast, Northern Ireland — £75 all-in

If you're at a non-London university and want a domestic option, Belfast is the under-the-radar UK trip. EasyJet and Ryanair fly from Liverpool, Edinburgh, Bristol, Manchester and Newcastle for £25-£45 return. No passport, no roaming, and you can stretch your loan further.

What to do: Titanic Belfast (£24, but the Sunday opening at £15 is a steal), Black Cab tours (£12-£15 per person, 1.5 hrs, the Troubles in vivid first-person), Giant's Causeway day trip (£35 by bus tour, includes Carrick-a-Rede), Cathedral Quarter pubs. Hostels from £18/night (Vagabonds is the backpacker classic).

Total budget: £30 flight + £90 hostel (5 nights) + £40 food = £160 all-in. Domestic so slightly pricier per night but no passport hassle and your UK SIM works.

Booking strategy: when to lock it in

We track price movements daily and the pattern for Reading Week routes is:

• 8 weeks before: Best average prices on Ryanair and Wizz Air. £25-£40 returns to Eastern Europe regularly available.
• 4-6 weeks before: Prices begin climbing as flights fill. Still good deals but the £18-£25 fares are mostly gone.
• 2 weeks before: Avoid. Prices typically double from their floor for European budget routes during this window.
• Last-minute (3-7 days): Occasional flash deals appear if a flight has under-sold, but very route-specific. Don't plan around it.

For 2026 Reading Week (most universities first or second week of November), book early September for the best chance of the £25 fares.

What to skip

A few "great Reading Week deals" that aren't:

Iceland. Genuinely beautiful, genuinely cheap to fly to (Play and Icelandair from Edinburgh and Stansted), but November daylight is 5 hours and the on-the-ground costs (£8 a coffee, £25 a meal) make a 5-day trip cost £400+ even on a £100 flight.

Berlin. Off-season but still expensive — €90-€120/night for budget hotels, hostels around €30/night. Lovely city but no longer a budget destination.

Anywhere with a UK transit/connection. Connecting through London on a non-London-departure ticket adds 4-6 hours and sometimes £30-£50 in airport-transfer costs that wipe out the saving. Direct flights only.

The bottom line

Reading Week is engineered for cheap travel — you have a non-teaching week between two peak periods, the weather still works for Mediterranean and North African destinations, and the airfare price-floor is at its annual best. The cities that reward UK students most are the Eastern European capitals (Krakow, Sofia, Bucharest) for under £110 all-in, with Lisbon and Marrakech as the warmer £130-£195 options. Domestic Belfast covers the no-passport scenario.

The skill is committing 8 weeks ahead. The £25 Krakow return becomes £55 by the time you're packing for it; book early September for first-week-of-November flights.

Ready to plan? Compare cheap flights on JetMeAway and book hostels via our hotels page. Don't forget a travel eSIM — Bulgaria, Albania and Morocco roaming on UK networks costs £5-£7/day.

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Prices reflect published carrier rates at time of writing and change frequently. Verify current rates before booking. JetMeAway compares partner sites and earns small commissions on bookings made through our links, at no extra cost to you.