As much as I love to travel, sometimes it is just not in the cards. Spring Break is just around the corner and my family and I have come up with some fun cheap ways to enjoy Spring Break without breaking the bank!
Have a picnic– Living in the south the weather over spring break is usually optimal for a picnic in the park or even in your backyard… not so much for my snow bunny friends living up north! If you can’t make it outside or if you’re like me (an indoor kind of gal) then you can always have a picnic right on your living room floor. Put down a blanket and pack up lunches and snacks. My kids like to invite their favorite toys and stuffed animals to join us.
Go to the zoo or aquarium– We are lucky to have a zoo right down the road from us. For Christmas my mom bought us a yearly membership (Thanks mom!), which is not only a great gift but also a great way for us to get outdoors and learn about some animals! My kids like to go to the zoo a few times a month and it never gets old. There is also an aquarium about an hour away from us that we enjoy. We especially love going during special offers like buy one get one free tickets or $10 off. Check out Groupon or the zoo/aquarium website near you to find special offers like these.
Build a fort– There is nothing more fun to my kids than spending the afternoon building a fort right in our living room. Forts are quite a treat in our house. The key to a perfect fort is to use lots of blankets and pillows! The only thing more exciting than building a fort is watching movies in them! We usually get in our pajamas, snuggle under the blankets and enjoy a special snack. Sometimes we will watch an old favorite and other times we check out the local Redbox to rent something new. As much as we enjoy going to a movie theater, it can get quite expensive for a family of five. This staycation idea is guaranteed to save you some money so dust off the DVD player and enjoy a family movie night in your new fort!
Have a game night– We love playing games! They are all a huge hit in our house. If you don’t have any board or card games you can make some! Bingo is easy fun game to make at home. My kids like to make their own bingo cards using stickers. Just make sure you have a few of the same exact sticker so that you can make a matching set. If you don’t own any Bingo markers you can use a snack to mark your bingo cards. Any type of small snack that fits inside your bingo square will work! My kiddos also enjoy games like Simon Says, which doesn’t require a board or cards at all!
Put on a puppet show– Make good use out of all of those mismatched socks and make puppets out of them. Another household item you can use to make puppets is paper bags. You can decorate them with markers, glitter, stickers or whatever art supplies you have on hand. My kids love to put on shows for us in our living room. This is a great cheap activity that is sure to make some fun memories.
Have a scavenger hunt– This is a great backyard activity that your kids will love! Pretend you are pirates and hide gold coins (found at the dollar store or left over from Halloween) all over your house or backyard. This activity is weather permitting however if you are unable to be outside then you can pick a room in your house instead! You can also draw a map of a room in your house or map of your backyard and have the kids find specific items on the map. Another option is to put things in Easter eggs and hide the eggs in your backyard.
Make a photo booth– All you need is a camera or phone to take the photos with. Use a sheet or tablecloth to use as your backdrop and you can use props like left over Halloween costumes or even make masks and props out of construction paper. My kiddos had a blast creating our own photo booth!
Make play dough– As a kid my mom would make play dough every time we had a play date. I have since passed down the tradition and make play dough with my kiddos now. It is a fun easy craft that is ready in minutes. This recipe is my favorite, enjoy!
Materials
- 1 cup water
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup salt
- 1 tablespoon cream of tartar
- Food coloring
- Saucepan
- 1 cup flour
Directions
- Combine water, oil, salt, cream of tartar, and food coloring in a saucepan and heat until warm.
- Remove from heat and add flour.
- Stir, then knead until smooth.
- Store this dough in an airtight container.
Go on a mystery ride– Mystery rides are a huge hit in my household. We like to get in the car and just see where we end up. Sometimes we have a destination in mind while other days we just drive in a random direction. When I was a kid my dad would take us on all types of mystery ride adventures and they are some of my favorite memories to this day. Some mystery rides that we have taken in the past are to an ice cream stand, our favorite restaurant and the beach. Our ultimate mystery ride was to Disney World! (but this obviously is not a cheap staycation idea, haha!)
Hope you enjoyed my tips on how to survive a staycation! If you have any other staycation ideas please feel free to add them in our comments section!
Happy Travelin’
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