From Thanksgiving to Christmas to New Years, the holiday season just flies by way too fast. I enjoy every minute spent appreciating my friends and family, but with trying to find a job over the three-week break and fitting in everything I need to do before the new semester, I am out of vacation time.

We all wouldn’t mind spending a few weeks in Hawaii, but airfare is so expensive during the holiday season; especially for college kids or parents with children in college. The Pacific Northwest has so much to offer for fun, affordable mini-vacations. So, maybe for this Winter break plan a weekend trip with your friends or family to one of these awesome destinations.

Leavenworth, Washington is about two and a half hours from the Seattle area. Leavenworth is the perfect winter destination for celebrating the holidays complete with a town beautifully decorated in lights, horse-drawn sleighs and it’s own nutcracker museum. Winter classics like tubing and sledding are an obvious must-have in Leavenworth, but for the skiers and snowboarders Stevens Pass and Mission Ridge are only a half hour away. With no airplane ticket needed, this is an affordable destination for the winter loving, outdoors types.

Bend, Oregon is a little under six hours away from the Seattle area, a bit of a drive, but worth the trip. Bend is a winter paradise and is completely taken over by snow during the holiday season. Snowmobiling, sledding, hiking, skiing and snowboarding is all just a short drive away. This is the perfect destination for people who love the outdoors and snow, but also want the great shopping and comfortable living promised in any vacation. The Old Mill District is an outdoor mall with both affordable and high-end stores. The shopping center celebrates the holidays with carolers, carriage rides and pictures with Santa.

Before you leave, visit Parrilla Grill for amazing fish tacos. You can visit online to see the various size and price options for vacation rentals, condos or hotels. Bend is a winter wonderland and is a mini-vacation destination that offers a lot of adventure for the price to stay.

Whistler, British Columbia is about four and a half hours away from Seattle. If you haven’t been to Canada, Whistler will make you a regular visitor. Whistler village looks like what you would imagine Santa’s village to look like during the holidays. Skiers and snowboarders will spend the day on Whistler and Blackcomb to flood back into the village to various ski resorts, restaurants and bars. Younger children can be enrolled in daily skiing or snowboarding classes as well.

The place that held winter Olympics has much more to offer than just the mountains; the village holds a variety of high-end shops and hosts an epic nightlife. Get a picture and pose with the Olympic rings in the village or be a kid again and get a bag of candy at the Great Glass Elevator Candy Shop. You can find luxury resorts to townhouses to stay in when you visit Whistler, British Columbia.

My ideal vacation is watching a holiday movie with my family, drinking hot chocolate and looking at the snow. However, spending a weekend in one of these winter wonderlands makes my winter break actually feel like a vacation.