A weekend trip is measured in usable hours, not nights

These are listed in the order worth acting on, which with short break timing is not the order they are usually presented in.

Nights are a misleading unit

Two nights sounds fixed, and the actual time available varies enormously with departure and return times. A Friday evening arrival and a Sunday morning departure can leave barely a day on the ground. Counting hours between arrival and departure, minus transfers, is the honest measure and changes which flights look cheap.

Thursday evening is the lever

Leaving after work on Thursday frequently converts a two-night trip into something closer to three days. Thursday evening fares are often lower than Friday ones because business demand has passed and leisure demand has not started. The cost is one evening; the gain is usually a full day.

Protect the last day

An early Sunday departure removes the entire final day, which is often the best one because you have found your feet. A late afternoon or evening return costs a little more and adds several usable hours. Where a Monday morning return is possible, it is frequently the best value flight of the whole trip.

Transfers eat the margin

A cheap airport an hour and a half from the city removes three hours from a short trip in each direction. On a week-long holiday that is trivial; on a two-night break it is a substantial proportion of the time available. Adding transfer time and cost to the fare is the only fair comparison between airports.

Build the itinerary around the hours you have

A realistic short-break plan contains three or four things, not ten. Choosing a single neighbourhood and exploring it properly produces a better trip than crossing a city repeatedly. The most common regret on a short trip is having rushed rather than having missed something.

Everything above, in order of what to do first

1. Nights are a misleading unit. Two nights sounds fixed, and the actual time available varies enormously with departure and return times.
2. Thursday evening is the lever. Leaving after work on Thursday frequently converts a two-night trip into something closer to three days.
3. Protect the last day. An early Sunday departure removes the entire final day, which is often the best one because you have found your feet.
4. Transfers eat the margin. A cheap airport an hour and a half from the city removes three hours from a short trip in each direction.
5. Build the itinerary around the hours you have. A realistic short-break plan contains three or four things, not ten.

The takeaway

Count the hours on the ground, not the nights on the booking.

Small and repeatable beats ambitious and abandoned, almost every time.