What is the ideal amount of times you change lodging on a two week trip?

No, 4 is fine. In general I travel for 2 weeks and change 3-4 times.
3-4 nights is a good length of time in smaller places. In big cities if I want to see a lot then I like 5-6 nights.

I don’t do one nights unless it’s necessary. Examples would be on a road trip and I need to stop at night or if I’m staying near the airport if my regular hotel is too far away to make my flight. I also very, very rarely do 2 nights. Only in very small places or if I’ve been before and just want to quickly stop before going elsewhere.

So 4 stops in 14 nights is an average of 3.5 nights per stop. That’s reasonable to me.

That works out to 3 nights in each place which is a good amount of time... But it also depends on how far you are traveling between places, and whether it is train, car or plane ... Every change is 1/2 a day shot. We have done up to 6 total with two stops being for one night only when traveling by car between major destinations, those days we've spent stopping and visiting places along the way.

There is no one answer. It depends whether you are staying in a smaller area, say Andalucia, where 2 nights in some places are ample, and travel time is only 1-2 hours. Also depends on your travel speed preference and whether you are a snacker or five course type traveler....1 hour vs 5 at a top tier museum. 4 would be about my pace.

once would be enough for me,but no more than 2.

A two week trip. If it’s inclusive of arrival and departure dates then 3, if not then 4. But it also depends on how far spread out the destinations are. London, Geneva, Athens, Moscow would be insane, for two weeks. But 3/4 cities with a close train tide would be fine.

We have learned that 3 nights 2 full days mostly works for us no matter where we are and that 4 nights 3 full days is about our max. I never thought we would like to pack and unpack that much but we're learned that we are ok with that.

You can’t generalise, as it depends on where you are visiting. If your 4 places are London, Paris, Rome and Berlin, then that’s too much movement for me.

I rarely have less than a week anywhere and almost never less than 5 nights anywhere. I have done road trips in the past where I have the odd one night stop en route somewhere else.

Of course I can only say what I like.

I like the length of my stay in any one place to be one day longer than I think I want to see my top sights. Having that "extra" day allows me to meander and wander into something unexpected. Knowing that I have that "extra" day allows me to travel at a more relaxed (for me) pace.

If the trip is exactly 14 days with the 15th for flying back to SFO, then changing 4 times is max.

I think that is about perfect! A good balance between the trouble and variety. It is what I aim for on a 2 week trip.

I like the length of my stay in any one place to be one day longer than I think I want to see my top sights.

CWSocial, this is genius. I really love what you said here.

My dream trip is two weeks in ONE PLACE— just to settle in and relax lochside or fjordside or riverside somewhere — but I don’t know that I will ever get to do that.

For two weeks, four places seems okay. Three might be a tiny bit better but of course it all depends on the trip — and I probably have moved way more than that on any actual trip I have done because reality.

CWSocial, love your reply but its the flip side of the way I think of it. I always say the right amount of time in a place is enough time I've seen most of the sights that drew me there, but not so much time that I'm not wistful to return.

Last September we changed lodging six times for a 16 night trip. My husband said after he felt it was a bit too much moving around. It was mostly a train trip -- I think if we had a car for the duration he wouldn't have felt it quite the same.

Kim - me too! I'd love to plan a trip to stay in one place for a week or two. What a luxury that would be!

To Andrea's point, perhaps one of the places that I'm still "wistful to return to" can become a future long stay.

And to the OP's question, assuming you are pre-booking hotels, you can do your best to plan the timing in advance based on your preferences, but can really only judge what would have been "ideal" for yourself during or after your stay.

Maybe once, maybe no changes. A couple of times we have done eight weeks straight in Venice.

My first trip to Italy was 12 nights: Milan 1, Venice 4, Florence 5, CT 1, Milan 1. It worked out well. In hindsight, the only change I'd have made was to extend the trip by adding a night to the CT.

11 years later, I've slowed down, spend less time sightseeing each day. On a 2-week trip I'd have no problem with 4 hotel changes, but I'd consider carefully how much travel time I'm using.

In two weeks, 4 or less would be ok. Of course, whenever possible I like to stay in one place as long as I can. But it's not always convenient or even possible to do.

It completely depends. I prefer avoiding any one night stays because longer stays save time packing and unpacking, checking in and out and moving from place to place. One night stops give the trip a rushed feel. A long string of one night stops can feel like a death march. In general, even two-night stays make the pace feel much more relaxed.

My itinerary is driven by what/where I want to see. Time at one place is dictated by sights I want to visit. Cities like Rome, London or Paris can easily justify staying put a whole week. Other places just don't have enough sights to interest me for more than a day. I might add extra nights just for relaxation but I wouldn't do it on a two-week trip.

A two week trip? No changes for me.

Once, max. I generally like 7-10 days at a min per city.

Travel safe,

One Fast Bob

There are so many variables that I consider. My recent Trip Report to France even covers the reasoning of how I enjoyed several 1-night stops.

First variable is people’s styles & comfort. For instance, I can handle and even thrive with shorter stay times than my husband. Both are equally valid.

Since this is a general question, I’ll just say 1-2 days for villages and 3-5 for cities. This assumes no more than 3 hours to reach next location. If it’s longer, add another day to the estimate.

It depends on the places I'm visiting. But more than four is too many for me unless you count a last late evening stay at an airport hotel. Ideally, we like to average about 5 nights per stop. But we'd rather see more in depth. It's a matter of taste.