THINKING of booking a trip to Edinburgh or Lisbon? You should ditch the popular cities for these incredible dupes – like Wolverhampton and Limerick.
Ben Aitken, the author of Sh*tty Breaks: A Celebration of Unsung Cities, has spent a year exploring overlooked cities and reveals why he’d rather go there than some of the classic bucket list destinations.
6
6
Over the course of a year, Ben ventured all over the country to 12 cities that were the least visited in terms of weekend breaks.
In his adventure across the UK, Ben went to Sunderland, Chelmsford, Preston, Wolverhampton, Wrexham, Limerick, Newry, Milton Keynes, Bradford, Newport, Gibraltar and Dunfermline.
He spent a few days in each doing various activities, trying the food, discovering new pubs.
Talking to Sun Travel, Ben insisted these cities are better than the bigger names you’ve probably heard of.
Ben told us: “The worst pizza I’ve ever had was in Venice, so I’d rather go to Wolverhampton. I’d also swap Edinburgh for Dunfermline – given that they’re neighbours.
“I’d also say that Newport’s better than Cardiff – that’s going to get me into trouble. I’ve said it before that Sunderland for me is the best city in the North East, so I’d swap that with Newcastle.
“Limerick is a match for Dublin. I’m not going to say it’s better, but it’s half the price with half the crowds, and the Guinness is better there. And let’s give some love to Preston, I’d rather spend a weekend in Preston than in Lisbon.”
He added: “I’m not saying that Edinburgh is not fantastic, Venice isn’t cool, and Paris isn’t sexy. But other places are of value and of note and are interesting as well.
“We can give these hotspots a breather and add Dunfermline to our Edinburgh city break.”
Something that Ben noted was a big plus in all of these places was the affordability compared to the bigger city counterparts.
6
6
He continued: “In Wolverhampton, I stayed in a really nice hotel called The Mount, which is the best hotel in the city by all accounts – and it was £100 a night.
“Dunfermline is 40 minutes away from Edinburgh, and I stayed at Garvock House for around £180. The couple that run the hotel say that they are getting more people stay with them rather than in Edinburgh where hotels cost around £400 a night.
“I’d say to anyone doing that, give Dunfermline at least two hours. I went hover crafting, water skiing and went to the football too.”
Other activities Ben did during the breaks was walk an alpaca in Bradford see the football in Wrexham, indoor skydiving in Milton Keynes, and skiing in Sunderland.
6
It wasn’t just the stays that were a fraction of the price, that goes for food and drink too.
Ben explained: “In Preston, I ate at a restaurant called Aven which had a lunchtime that was eight courses and £40 – which is great value for money.”
It’s also where Ben enjoyed a chip barmcake (essentially a chips in a roll) for £2.80.
Other delicacies Ben tried were the orange chips in Bradford, as well as a pink slice and a stottie in Sunderland.
In each of the cities were also the friendly locals, who were it’s safe to say, surprised, by Ben’s choice of weekend break.
Ben told us: “People are more inclined to chat with you because they’re not swamped with tourists, so they’re happy to chat and to engage.
“I was met with 50 shades of bafflement when I told locals I was on holiday in Sunderland or in Bradford.”
Not only were the locals amazed, but they were also on hand to dish out recommendations they had in the area too.
Ben insists that anyone can have a fun and adventurous weekend break in any of these cities.
Ben added: “Anywhere can be interesting if you engage with it in the right way and approach them in the right fashion and give it half the chance.
“If you engage with these cities on their own terms you can have a nourishing enjoyable weekend and you’ll always find somewhere that’s doing great food and great beer.”
Ben documented every trip to the 12 underrated cities on social media – @benaitken85.
Sh*tty Breaks: A Celebration of Unsung Cities will be released on May 8, 2025.
6