The ‘Great Recession’ continues to influence the economy, job market, and more palpable, how we undergo our everyday lives. Many people need to keep a tight budget, and extravagances, regardless of how badly wanted, are usually the first sacrificed. This year, rather than spending thousands on a few fleeting days, feel like you’ve had a second vacation through these creative staycations the whole family will love.
Weekday Beach
Those within hours of a coast, head to the wave breaks for relaxing family time in the sun and surf. However, notable destinations like Hawaii, San Diego, Miami, etc are expensive, especially ‘in season.’ Moreover, vendors know the habits of the public; weekends, when most people visit for a day or more, prices rise, quickly eating away at a family’s modest budget.
Rather than pursue popular destinations or visit during busy weekend hours, reserve weekdays for taking a trip to the beach. Parking is easier; food is cheaper; and, crowds are less during the weekdays. It makes for more intimate family time and keeps dollars in the family vault.
Cost-Effective Camping
‘Roughing it’ means different things to different people. With today’s camping products, one could live (pretty) comfortably among the pine trees and falling leaves. Realistically, it can cost less than $500 for supplies, renting a campground, and extras regarding a family camping excursion. To cut costs, see if you can borrow needs from friends and family members, or share the costs and the purchased camping goods.
Staying in a stuffy, cramped hotel room can cost a family an upwards of $200 or more per night, yet a spacious, cozy tent may cost a fraction, and you have it for as many nights as you desire.
History City Lesson
Depending on the logistics of your living area, it’s likely a (somewhat) major city is within a car ride’s reach. Perhaps not the first thought regarding a family outing, yet cities are rich in history, museums, and specific cultures. The city offers parents opportunity to teach kids about a city’s history, people, food, architecture, and more.
Don’t tell kids you’re going to ‘teach’ them; that sounds like school talk. Rather, orchestrate a game, asking the kids to answer questions on a pre-trip quiz. Or, give them a camera, asking them to take pictures of specific points of interest. Kids are full of questions and cities present opportunity to educate them in an entertaining way.
Backyard Transformation
Those with a decently-sized backyard may host flowerbeds, a hammock and maybe a few trees and foliage. However, there’s potential to transform it into something ‘different’ for the weekend or longer. What does a genuine Hawaiian luau look like? After some online investigation, one could recruit images, gain information on décor, and transform a suburban backyard into a tropical paradise. (Can you hear the waves crashing on the North Shore?)
Get the children involved, so they feel like they helped create the transformation. Consider inviting neighborhood friends, family members and your children’s’ playmates over for some hula dancing and frosty beverages.
Creativity is the answer to the ‘Great Recession’s’ damper on fun family vacations. Fun has never cost any person any amount of money throughout time. A family doesn’t need to spend a lot of money on a vacation; you only need to spend time being creative.
About the Author
Daniel Lampley’s life revolves around his kids. As a stay-at-home dad, he enjoys blogging about home life and family activities the kids will value. Daniel blogs on behalf of YouTubeDownloaderSite, which he uses to download videos while on vacation.