Vacations are awesome, that’s a non-negotiable fact, but the cost associated with them can be a real downer. If your budget is tight or you just don’t feel like emptying out the kids’ college funds for a weekend at the beach, set yourself up for some fine family fun with a staycation. Stifle those groans because as cheesy as they sound, staycations, when done right, are a blissfully inexpensive way to bring a little rest and relaxation right into your own backyard.
Come up with a plan as a family to make your staycation a real vacation away from the daily obligations and responsibilities. Are you going to use computers and tablets (word of advice: don’t) or watch TV outside of designated family time? Will you cook or order in? Get together your supplies and take care of the typical household chores in advance so you don’t fall into the trap of doing laundry or paying bills while you’re supposed to be chilling out with some chocolate covered frozen bananas and your feet in a blow up pool.
Set your Out of Office email reply and tell your friends you’re not going to be reachable for a few days. Write out a schedule of events – even if it just says “hang out with the fam” – so that you don’t fall into the same routine as always, and then get to staycationing. Wondering what to do with yourself during your time off but not away? Here is a list of ideas to get you started but let your imagination run wild and then get your stay-cation on.
Accommodations
- Go backyard camping under the stars
- Have a pajama party in the family room
- Stay in the same room as always but without the alarm clock
- Let the kids make forts in their bedroom and roll out sleeping bags
Entertainment
- Curate a collection of board games or card games that everyone can play
- Rent new movies or pull out some family favorites for a movie night
- Have a family talent show
- Hold a video game championship tournament
- Tell ghost stories (as long as no one will have nightmares)
- Binge watch a show together
Dinning
- Compile menus from new restaurants in town and try a different one each night
- Make waffles and pancakes ahead of time and freeze them for quick breakfast
- Eat Al Fresco (weather permitting) for a change of scenery
- Plan to make the favorite meal of each family member
- Make an ice cream sundae bar with all the topics your heart desires
- Pop a paper umbrella in your smoothies (or adult beverage) for a festive feel
Experiences
- Go Geocaching and see what you find
- Hit up community events like concerts in the park, festivals, or city celebrations
- Turn your backyard into a tropical oasis with a plastic pool and solar garden lights
- Visit museums, observatories, historical centers, and planetariums
- Attend a high school, college, or professional sporting event
- See a play at the community theater
