Pastel buildings on a Lisbon hillside street
Budget Without The Awkwardness

Hen Do in the UK or Abroad? An Honest Cost Comparison

Lisbon can genuinely be cheaper than Brighton. Here are the numbers.

DB

Delaney Brooks

Budget & logistics

June 28, 2026 · 7 min read

The instinct is that staying in the UK is the responsible, affordable option. Sometimes it is. Often it very much isn't, because a UK hen weekend charges you resort prices for weather you can't rely on.

Cost, per person, 2 nightsUK cityLisbonKraków
Travel£60£110£95
Accommodation£150£95£55
Food & drink£140£85£50
One activity£45£35£25
Total£395£325£225

Where the UK wins

Anyone with a baby, a dog, or a job that might call. No airport, no passport admin, and a train home if it all goes wrong. For a group with even one person in that position, the UK is worth the extra hundred pounds.

Where abroad wins

Sunshine you can actually plan around, cheaper food and drink, and the fact that a flight makes people commit. Nobody drives home from Lisbon on Saturday night because they're tired.

The compromise most groups land on

A UK coastal town off-season, or a short-haul European city in shoulder months. Both give you the group-house format at a price where the two people quietly worrying about money can relax.

Out of Office weekly

The only group chat worth being in.

One email a week: a destination worth arguing about, a real budget breakdown, and something useful for the trip you keep not booking.

No spam, no drip sequence, unsubscribe in one click.

Keep reading