The cheapest night of the week to stay in a hotel, city by city
5 min read
In London, New York and Paris, a Sunday night costs far less than any other night. In Osaka, only Saturday is expensive. In Washington, the weekend is the bargain. We compared every day of the week in 62 cities.
Most people expect hotels to cost more at the weekend. That is true in many cities, but not in all of them, and the cheapest night is often not the one you would guess.
We took every night from April 25 to November 27, 2026, which is 217 nights, or exactly 31 of each day of the week. For each of our 62 cities we averaged the price of a 3-star hotel by the day of check-in. "Sunday" below means checking in on Sunday and leaving on Monday.
The short version
- In 36 of the 62 cities, the most expensive day of the week cost at least 10% more than the cheapest one.
- In those 36 cities, the cheapest night was Sunday in 18 and Monday in 13.
- The most expensive night was Saturday in 25 of them, Friday in 6, and a Tuesday or Wednesday in 5.
- In 13 cities, the day of the week made almost no difference (less than 5%).
Behind those totals there are four distinct patterns.
1. The Sunday bargain: London, New York, Paris
In the big business capitals, hotels are busy with work travel from Monday to Thursday and with visitors on Friday and Saturday. Sunday night falls between the two, and the price shows it.
- London: $191 on Sunday, against $332 on Saturday (74% more) and $298 on Wednesday.
- New York: $280 on Sunday, against $473 on Saturday (69% more) and $458 on Wednesday.
- Paris: $214 on Sunday, against $316 on Wednesday (47% more). Here the middle of the week is the most expensive part.
- Amsterdam: $211 on Sunday, against $365 on Saturday (73% more).
Sunday was the cheapest night in 18 cities, most of them in Europe and North America.
2. Only Saturday is expensive: Japan
Osaka has the widest gap of all 62 cities, and it comes from a single night. From Monday to Thursday a room cost $84 to $89. Friday was $98. Saturday was $156, which is 86% more than Monday.
Tokyo shows the same shape: $166 on Friday and $225 on Saturday. If you are planning a weekend in Japan, staying Thursday and Friday instead of Friday and Saturday avoids the most expensive night.
Taipei is close to this pattern too, although Friday is already higher there: $80 on Monday, $121 on Friday and $141 on Saturday.
3. The classic weekend premium: Las Vegas, Miami, Prague
These are cities people visit for the weekend, and both Friday and Saturday carry the premium.
- Las Vegas: about $153 on Sunday and Monday, $199 on Friday and $205 on Saturday (34% more than Monday).
- Miami: $159 on Monday, $240 on Friday (52% more).
- Prague: $104 on Sunday, $166 on both Friday and Saturday (60% more).
4. The weekend is the bargain: Washington and São Paulo
In a few cities the pattern is reversed, because the visitors are mostly there for work.
- Washington: $316 on Tuesday, but $244 on Friday, $247 on Saturday and $239 on Sunday. Tuesday cost 32% more than Sunday.
- São Paulo: $94 on Wednesday, against $82 on Saturday and $74 on Sunday.
The numbers side by side
| City | Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| London | $191 | $234 | $292 | $298 | $257 | $279 | $332 |
| New York City | $280 | $351 | $430 | $458 | $393 | $449 | $473 |
| Paris | $214 | $286 | $312 | $316 | $294 | $286 | $304 |
| Washington DC | $239 | $299 | $316 | $315 | $270 | $244 | $247 |
| Prague | $104 | $110 | $112 | $115 | $126 | $166 | $166 |
| Las Vegas | $154 | $153 | $158 | $161 | $166 | $199 | $205 |
| Osaka | $94 | $84 | $84 | $85 | $89 | $98 | $156 |
| Taipei | $88 | $80 | $81 | $81 | $85 | $121 | $141 |
| Cairo | $53 | $54 | $54 | $54 | $54 | $54 | $54 |
Average nightly price in USD by day of check-in, 3-star hotels, booked 15 days in advance, check-ins from April 25 to November 27, 2026. The cheapest night in each row is in bold.
Where the day does not matter
Cairo, in the last row of the table above, is one example of a larger group. In 13 cities the gap between the cheapest and the most expensive day was under 5%: Johannesburg, Nairobi, Cairo, Ushuaia, Bali, Cusco, San José, Zanzibar, Lima, Casablanca, Quito, Ho Chi Minh City and Bogotá. In these cities you can pick your dates without thinking about the day of the week.
What this means if you are planning a trip
- In a big Western capital, include Sunday night. Arriving on Sunday instead of leaving on Sunday can make one of your nights much cheaper.
- In Japan, avoid Saturday night if you can. Friday costs close to a weekday.
- In Las Vegas, Miami or Prague, go midweek. Sunday to Thursday prices were well below the weekend.
- In a business city like Washington, the weekend is the cheap part.
How to read these numbers
- The period is April 25 to November 27, 2026. We do not have winter data yet.
- Averages can be pulled up by a few very expensive nights around large events. We checked the typical (median) night as well, and the patterns described here hold in both.
- The reasons given for each pattern are the usual explanations. The data shows the prices, not who was staying.
- Prices are for 2 adults, 1 night, with breakfast included, at hotels with a review score of 7 or more, booked 15 days before check-in. Nights when a city was nearly sold out are left out.
