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GOBankingRates

Heather Altamirano

20 Most Budget-Friendly East Coast Tourist Destinations

Sean Pavone GOBankingRates North Carolina Travel Leisure

Alex Potemkin / Getty Images/iStockphoto

Thinking about vacationing on the East Coast, but don’t want to blow your budget? Taking a few days off to unwind isn’t cheap, but there are trips that are wallet-friendly and fun! From New York to the Carolinas, there are plenty of choices.

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To help navigate your next trip, GOBankingRates analyzed popular tourist spots to find the most budget-friendly East Coast vacation destinations. Trip details include airfare, hotel, three meals at mid-range restaurants, 12 meals at inexpensive restaurants, six beers and six sodas. Here are the 20 most affordable East Coast destinations.

1. Concord, North Carolina

Airfare cost for a couple: $197
Total cost of hotel: $215
Total cost for all meals: $462
Total cost for drinks: $66
Total cost for vacation: $940

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2. Macon, Georgia

Airfare cost for a couple: $598
Total cost of hotel: $176
Total cost for all meals: $360
Total cost for drinks: $50
Total cost for vacation: $1,184

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3. Niagara Falls, New York

Airfare cost for a couple: $324
Total cost of hotel: $394
Total cost for all meals: $563
Total cost for drinks: $57
Total cost for vacation: $1,337

4. Providence, Rhode Island

Airfare cost for a couple: $646
Total cost of hotel: $263
Total cost for all meals: $528
Total cost for drinks: $53
Total cost for vacation: $1,490

5. Savannah, Georgia

Airfare cost for a couple: $847
Total cost of hotel: $188
Total cost for all meals: $420
Total cost for drinks: $41
Total cost for vacation: $1,495

SeanPavonePhoto / Getty Images/iStockphoto

6. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

Airfare cost for a couple: $879
Total cost of hotel: $198
Total cost for all meals: $375
Total cost for drinks: $54
Total cost for vacation: $1,506

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7. Bethesda, Maryland

Airfare cost for a couple: $763
Total cost of hotel: $287
Total cost for all meals: $423
Total cost for drinks: $45
Total cost for vacation: $1,518

8. Alexandria, Virginia

Airfare cost for a couple: $763
Total cost of hotel: $227
Total cost for all meals: $488
Total cost for drinks: $51
Total cost for vacation: $1,528

9. Asheville, North Carolina

Airfare cost for a couple: $666
Total cost of hotel: $239
Total cost for all meals: $564
Total cost for drinks: $60
Total cost for vacation: $1,529

10. Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Airfare cost for a couple: $570
Total cost of hotel: $291
Total cost for all meals: $630
Total cost for drinks: $48
Total cost for vacation: $1,539

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11. Ellicott City, Maryland

Airfare cost for a couple: $772
Total cost of hotel: $218
Total cost for all meals: $510
Total cost for drinks: $53
Total cost for vacation: $1,554

12. Mooresville, North Carolina

Airfare cost for a couple: $902
Total cost of hotel: $252
Total cost for all meals: $390
Total cost for drinks: $37
Total cost for vacation: $1,581

13. Panama City, Florida

Airfare cost for a couple: $928
Total cost of hotel: $220
Total cost for all meals: $420
Total cost for drinks: $43
Total cost for vacation: $1,610

14. Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Airfare cost for a couple: $750
Total cost of hotel: $408
Total cost for all meals: $405
Total cost for drinks: $49
Total cost for vacation: $1,616

15. Columbia, Maryland

Airfare cost for a couple: $772
Total cost of hotel: $310
Total cost for all meals: $488
Total cost for drinks: $51
Total cost for vacation: $1,620

16. Richmond, Virginia

Airfare cost for a couple: $837
Total cost of hotel: $205
Total cost for all meals: $558
Total cost for drinks: $50
Total cost for vacation: $1,650

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17. Cary, North Carolina

Airfare cost for a couple: $754
Total cost of hotel: $383
Total cost for all meals: $513
Total cost for drinks: $42
Total cost for vacation: $1,692

18. Albany, New York

Airfare cost for a couple: $824
Total cost of hotel: $251
Total cost for all meals: $588
Total cost for drinks :$49
Total cost for vacation: $1,712

19. Philadelphia

Airfare cost for a couple: $857
Total cost of hotel: $320
Total cost for all meals: $510
Total cost for drinks: $53
Total cost for vacation: $1,740

rodclementphotography / Getty Images/iStockphoto

20. Alpharetta, Georgia

Airfare cost for a couple: $884
Total cost of hotel: $239
Total cost for all meals: $570
Total cost for drinks: $55
Total cost for vacation: $1,748

Methodology: GOBankingRates found the most popular tourist destinations from Travel + Leisure’s “World Best Awards 2025,” Travel + Leisure’s “Best Small Towns of 2025,” TripAdvisor’s “Things to Do in US,” US News & World Report’s “Best Places to Live,” Nomadic Matt’s Places to Visit in the United States and Holdify’s Places to Visit. For this vacation, GOBankingRates assumed two adults going on vacation for three nights (Aug. 7-10). They had three meals at mid-range restaurants, 12 meals at inexpensive restaurants, six beers and six sodas. The average prices for each activity or item were sourced from Numbeo. The average price of the three cheapest hotels within 5 miles of the downtown were sourced from Hotels.com. The average airfare was sourced from the Bureau of Transportation’s average airfare for 2025. If the exact city is not listed, the closest airport was used. The average total cost of a vacation was calculated using the total cost for meals, drinks, hotel and airfare. The vacation locations were sorted to show the most affordable locations first. All data was collected on Oct. 1, 2025.

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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 20 Most Budget-Friendly East Coast Tourist Destinations

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