The most expensive cities to stay in a hotel this summer (can you guess which city raises rates 139%?)

This long weekend, with its abundance of grilled meats and mattress sales, marks the unofficial start of summer, one that the experts have predicted will be one of the busiest ever. And if you're one of the estimated 2.4 million travelers who will be flying every day between now and Labor Day, how much is it going to cost you for a hotel when you reach your destination? As always, it depends on where you're heading, but this probably isn't the summer for you to take that Sideways-inspired trip to wine country.

According to travel booking company Hipmunk (which beats Priceline's own William Shatner in the adorable mascot category), the average cost of a U.S. hotel room during the summer months is $167 per night, but that amount can vary based on your destination – and for once, New York isn't the most expensive city on the list.

The researchers at Hipmunk and Priceonomics have determined that the wine country cities of Sonoma, Napa and Santa Barbara, Calif. all have the highest average hotel cost, which ranges from $417 in Sonoma (and it takes a lot of Chardonnay to make that sound reasonable) to $338 and $311, respectively. Laguna Beach and San Francisco are the other California cities that make up the top 10. On a blog post, Hipmunk wrote:

In close proximity to some 400 wineries, and perennially hot in the summer, Sonoma is an immensely popular vacation destination. But the Northern California hotspot has a limited number of hotels, and in the summer prices accordingly skyrocket.

And that's true: prices in Sonoma during the summer months are 51% more expensive than they are in the winter. But Northern California isn't the worst offender when it comes to raising rates during the summer; that dubious distinction goes to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, where you can't swing a golf club without hitting...um, someone else swinging a golf club (there are more than 100 golf courses in the area) and also where you can guarantee that you'll be paying more than twice as much to visit in the summer months.

It's not exactly surprising that some of the cities on this list are beach towns or are known for their long, dismal or all-around-awful winters (Hello, Chicago, Anchorage and Milwaukee!).

So how might this help the undecided, budget conscious traveler? If you're not a sun worshipper, then maybe it's best to save some of those destinations until the off-season, especially the larger cities. Yes, Boston and Seattle can be unpleasant in the winter, but they're also less crowded. If you don't mind the heat, booking a trip where it's already hot – or hotter – might save some money. Because even though some destinations increase their prices during the summer, the inverse is also true: perpetually warm places (and a couple of out-of-season skiing towns) are actually cheaper during the summer and save their price increases for the Snowbirds.

Just don't forget to pack the sunblock. Lots and lots of sunblock.