How to Turn a Trip to a Friend’s Wedding into YOUR Vacation

The first time you get a wedding invitation from a close friend, you kind of feel like this:

But then they start to come in waves, so every time you get another one you feel more like this:

I am 26 years old. This means that I get a wedding invitation basically every month. In the past 2 years, all of my closest college friends not only got married, but they got married to their college sweetheart. Seriously. It’s like I’m in some kind of not-at-all plausible movie.

Now, if I was a woman in a romantic comedy, this is where I would launch into a self-depreciating bitch-fest about how I’m going to die alone. But you know what is way more interesting and helpful to you guys –

A post about how I turned those weddings into my personal vacations.Also, for the record, nothing against marriage, but not being married allows me to take a lot more trips. So, for now, I’ll say no gracias to that ring.

So now when I get a wedding invitation for an out of town wedding, I’m more like this:

Make it a long weekend

Flights are generally cheaper if you do NOT fly out on a Friday or Sunday. Why spend a fortune just to go to what is essentially a dinner and a party full of 90% strangers?

If you are going to a wedding on a Saturday, fly into the city on Thursday night and leave on Monday. Chances are you were already going to take at least one of those days off work, so cash in one more vacation day. You will probably save yourself at least half a day’s pay on your flight by avoiding peak travel times, and you’ll get some time to explore the city. I cannot say this enough: Leave work. Get your travel on.

Last year I went to a wedding in Steamboat, Colorado. I had to fly into Denver airport, which would have cost me at least $50 more on a Friday and around $75 more on a Sunday. I booked my flight to get in on a Thursday night and fly out on Monday so I could stay with a local friend before and after the wedding. Even if I didn’t have a local friend, I could have used the flight savings to book a cheap hotel and still enjoyed exploring Denver by myself.

Ask a friend or date to extend their trip with you

If you’re lucky, a few of your friends will be going to the same wedding. Hit them up and try to see if they can extend the trip as well so you can have an impromptu friend vacation. You can save tons on hotel rooms and rental cars while hanging out with someone you actually like, not a bunch of relatives of the bride and groom who have had too much too drink, or old people asking you when you are going to tie the knot.

Explore a nearby attraction

Who says you have to stay wherever the wedding is? I recently went to a wedding in Buffalo, New York. Other than the deliciously unhealthy food, Buffalo has pretty much nothing interesting to offer. However, I still chose to fly in on a Thursday. Instead of spending Friday eating my weight in Buffalo chicken wings, my friend and I rented a car and drove to Niagara Falls. I have wanted to see Niagara Falls for years, but the flight never seemed worth the price. This wedding gave me the perfect excuse to finally go. I even brought my passport along so I could walk to Canada. That’s right, I walked to another country. When’s the last time you went to a wedding and just took a stroll across an international border?!

Make that trip yours

Yes, the wedding is all about whoever is getting married, but who says they get the whole freaking weekend? Celebrate your freedom and make that wedding the perfect excuse to squeeze more traveling into your life.

Also, no one cares if you are with someone or not. This is me on basically every solo trip I take (to a wedding or otherwise):

Cheers to you and more trips!