How To Take A Budget Friendly Staycation
HOW TO HAVE A BUDGET FRIENDLY VACATION
Saving money has become a science for many people these days. With unemployment at an all time high and folks trying to conserve wherever they can, sometimes vacations are just out of the question.
What to do though if you don’t have the money but you have the vacation time and you need to use it?
There is an alternative these days and it’s become very popular, especially for senior citizens, people on a fixed income or low-income folks around the country.
It’s called a staycation. It means just what it sounds like! You stay at home while you’re on vacation.
Let’s look at some of the options of a staycation and how this type of vacationing might just be the ticket for you and yours!
WHAT'S THE CRITERIA FOR A STAYCATION?
- Have fun
- Create memories
- Feel better when you go back to work
- Indulge yourself within your means
THINGS I WANT TO DO
| DAY OF THE WEEK
| DID OR DITCHED
|
|---|---|---|
Hike Smith Rock
| Sunday
| Did
|
Tour the Painted Hills
| Monday
| Ditched
|
Get a manicure and a pedicure
| Tuesday
| Pedicure at beauty school
|
Have dinner at Anthony's
| Wednesday
| Did!
|
Go to Walton Lake & Snowshoe
| Thursday
| Did twice!
|
Scooter the dogs at least 3 times
| Friday
| 4 times
|
Make my coconut cake from scratch
| Saturday
| Ditched
|
Paint an accent wall in the kitchen
| Sunday
| Ditched
|
Sleep in
| Every day
| Did!!!
|
Write 140 hubs
| Here and there
| Wrote 138
|
Audrey's Staycation December 2010
TIPS FOR A BUDGET FRIENDLY VACATION
Things you can do on a staycation:
- Go to movies that you never get to go to because you’re always working
- Enjoy a dinner out at your favorite restaurant
- Sleep in to your heart’s content
- Play games – electronic and board games
- Walk and hike
- Play with man’s best friend and take him or her for long, long walks
- Go for drives to places you’ve always wanted to see
- Visit local museums
- Shop in local stores and check out businesses you’ve never visited
- Read the newspaper from cover to cover
- Finish that book you’ve had sitting on your nightstand for a month
- Start that book you always wanted to
- Relax on the deck in the sun and drink a margarita
- Watch videos to your heart’s content or sports events on TV
- Sew, knit, or do crafts you never have time to fit in
- Learn to cook or cook things that you generally don’t have time to try
- Catch up on letter writing or email - actually enjoy it because you have more time
- Shop for new clothes or things you need
- Go fishing, swimming, or sailing on the lake
- Go snow shoeing
- Spend a day riding bikes at a local park
- Go on a picnic
- Visit
state parks or national parks close by
- Maybe spend the night somewhere and come back the next day
- Take in a local rodeo, dog show, concert and have no time limits on yourself
- Go on a ferry ride
- Take a walking tour or other tour of places you’d like to see
- Learn to use your digital camera or movie camera and go hog wild taking pictures
- Go to the library and stay for hours
- Volunteer - reach out to volunteermatch.org
- Anything you can think of to enjoy yourself and call it vacation!
HAVING A BUDGET FRIENDLY VACATION
Even spending time on self-improvement on a staycation is okay! working on your house if that’s what you truly want to do is okay. But make sure that no matter what you do on your staycation, that you ENJOY your time off.
Spend time going over budgeting things or learn to do something on your computer you haven’t been able to fit into your busy work schedule.
Talk to your spouse, talk to your kids! Live, laugh, eat, and enjoy your time off.
Invite relatives or friends to come join you on your staycation and then all agree to do what pleases you most.Just make sure that they're responsible for their own expenses and that they chip in for food and activities.
You can have a wonderfully inexpensive staycation and not have to worry about the bills when you’re through with your vacation for months and years to come!
You can put your house in order so to speak in many ways by just having the time to attend to them rather than juggling them after a long day or week working.
Sometimes using your downtime to regroup and rethink everything that you have going on in your life can be the most relaxing vacation of all.
It’s amazing what we can think about changing or different ways or directions we want to go in when we have the peace and quiet to address things.
Whatever big things or small things you do on your staycation, make it yours. Own it and revel in the fact that you’re saving money and you’re enjoying yourself.
Make a list before your staycation of things you’d like to do but make it with the idea that it isn’t all inclusive.
You have the option to change your mind.....after all it’s your vacation! Or if you decide to do something not on the list....oh well, again.....it’s YOUR vacation!
HOW TO HAVE A BUDGET FRIENDLY STAYCATION
Remember that having time off is a gift and if we get paid for it, all the better.
Use your time to enjoy life and enjoy the many beautiful things around you...including your loved ones.
There are always other times for other types of vacation but sometimes a staycation can be just what the doctor ordered to give you a new spring in your step and a new lease on life when you return to your job!
Wishing you a happy staycation!
More Ideas on Staycations
- Staycation for cheap holidays
Avoid expensive air fare holidays abroad or costly cruise trips and instead experience cheap holidays by taking your vacation at home. Vacations of this type have been coined as staycations whereby you... - 5 Staycation Ideas and Tips
The recession has hit families the hardest of all. When money is tight, one of the luxuries many families with children will have to forgo is the annual vacation. Unfortunately, it's during times of tough... - What to do on a Romantic Staycation
For many people taking a vacation means much needed time with a loved one. This could be perhaps a long weekend or a whole week to unwind , recuperate and revisit some of the things that made you fall in... - Tips For A Successful Staycation
As the summer approaches and families continue to tighten the budget, a - Our Family Staycation! Create Your Fantasy Vacation ...
For us it started years ago-back when the price of gas wasn't even an issue. But now with gas nearing $4 a gallon, the - Top 3 Great Reasons to Go on A Staycation, Whether t...
Many take staycations to save money, but here are 3 other reasons to do so! - Plan A Winter Staycation- Tips and Ideas
Let's be honest. It's 7 degrees here in my neck of the woods today. There is nothing I would like more then to fly south for our vacation this winter. Far, far south. Aruba, Costa Rica south. The closer to the... - Why a Staycation is a Good Idea
A staycation seems to be the newest thing, all the rage this summer with the high cost of gasoline and all the added fees the airlines are tacking on. Even though it seems every where I turn I hear talk of the... - Fun and Affordable Staycation Ideas
Perhaps you'd like to reduce your carbon footprint by skipping high gas prices or costly airline travel. Maybe you would like to spend more - Vacation at Home: Top 5 Ways to Enjoy Your Staycatio...
With the economy still in stink mode, many of us are looking for ways to enjoy a vacation right at home, in other words a staycation. Staying home for vacation can actually be quite fun if you approach it...
