Head to Istanbul, Prague and Madrid for best value weekend away

Those looking for the best-value European city breaks this fall should head to Istanbul, Prague or Madrid, according to a new study. Travel site Skyscanner carried out research comparing flight and hotel costs as well as tourist attraction fees to determine the best-value city breaks in Europe this fall.

At around £157 ($251), Istanbul was the cheapest, followed by Prague with an average of £220 ($352) and Madrid for £258 ($413). These prices do not include the cost of the flights. Taking into account the cost of flights from London, the cheapest destinations this fall are Dublin with £395 ($633), Madrid for £428 ($685) and, surprisingly, the Swedish capital Stockholm for £434 ($695).

In the most expensive city break list, without factoring in the cost of the flights, Rome comes top with an average expenditure of £416 ($666), followed by London, £413 ($661), and Paris, £369 ($591). Research shows that London's red bus city tour is 36 percent more expensive than equivalent services in other cities such as Dublin.

The most expensive city, taking into account the cost of the flight from London, is Moscow, £748 ($1,198), jumping from eighth cheapest to the most expensive city, followed by Rome, £667 ($1,069), and Vienna, £627 ($1,005).

Skyscanner ranked Europe's leading city break destinations by comparing costs of three nights' accommodation in a 3-star central hotel, entry fees for two of the city's most popular tourist attractions and two tickets for the ‘hop on and hop off' bus city tour.