This year many of us are opting for a staycation. Just because you’re not hopping on a plane or taking the road trip of your dreams doesn’t mean you can’t have an epic, unforgettable vacation. In order to have a dream vacation in your own backyard you’ll need to do some advance planning. This is really no different than if you were planning a trip to a new destination or your favorite island. Think about how much time you spend researching things to do and good restaurants, or how much you look forward to the familiar tropical drink at your favorite beach bar after a long day on the water. Let’s get creative about how to have these same experiences at home. Here are 8 ideas for creating the perfect staycation.
Table of Contents
Commit To The Staycation
Step one, and perhaps the most crucial, is for you and your family to commit to the idea of a vacation. If you’ve taken a week off from work then, just as you would for any vacation, commit to the fact that this week is not going to be like every other week. If you start with this mindset you’ll be much more likely to open up yourself to the endless possibilities available for your staycation.
A key component to committing to the staycation is to pretend that you won’t be in your own house for the duration of your vacation. Pretend you are renting your house for a week (or long weekend). This means you won’t be doing any of the normal, everyday chores like laundry or vacuuming. Get all that out of the way before your staycation begins. Of course, if someone makes a mess you’ll have to clean it up, but you get the point. Start with a clean house.
Re-create Your Favorite Vacation Habits
Do you have certain habits or routines you like to do on vacation? Identify them and incorporate them into your staycation. We often have habits that get us into vacation mode or that help us decompress. To create the perfect staycation it’s important to make these a part of your daily routine at home. Ideas might include reading a good book within one week, a morning walk/run/swim, happy hour or lunch at the popular downtown restaurant.
Create a Staycation Theme
When you vacation away from home, your vacation likely includes a theme. You may not think about it that way, but you typically plan vacations around one or two main activities. That might be watersports, hiking, golfing or relaxing in the sun. Narrow down the field of focus for your staycation by choosing a theme. This will help you plan a rough outline of what you’re going to do for the week without getting overwhelmed with all the available options. The theme could be one of your favorites or something totally different. In fact, an awesome theme that will help you discover lots of things in your town you didn’t know about is a “try something new” theme. With that, you’re destined to get out of your daily comfort zone.
Become a Tourist in Your Town
Now that you’ve chosen a theme and decided what you would generally like to do during your staycation, it’s time to start pretending you’re a tourist. Use TripAdvisor, Yelp and Google Maps to find the most popular things to do in your town and the surrounding area. You are bound to find a few things you didn’t know about or are popular but you’ve never done because you thought they were too touristy.
Try Something New
One of the exciting parts of vacation is going somewhere new or trying a new sport/ adventure. Bring this concept to your staycation by checking out fat biking, hiking a different mountain, doing goat yoga or eating at the new vegan restaurant. Doing things that are different from what you would normally do kicks up your endorphins and you’ll feel a renewed sense of adventure. A day trip to a city you’ve never been to will also force you out of your comfort zone and into trying new things.
Staycation in Your Backyard
A staycation is the perfect chance to take advantage of the open space you have in your own backyard or at a nearby park. You’ve spent a lot of time mowing the lawn and gardening, and now it’s time to enjoy your hard work. Set up a game of corn hole, volleyball or badminton, and invite a few friends over for a backyard BBQ. Forks Over Knives has some great ideas for plant-based grilling recipes. Get a fire going in your fire pit and treat yourself to a few toasted marshmallows. Don’t feel guilty about indulging, but if you do, then set up a ropes course or bring a Monkii TRX system outside to work off the calories. Then cool off in your pool if you’re lucky enough to have one. Make it point to swim each day and/or lounge in the sun to get your daily dose of Vitamin D.
Go With The Flow
Too often, our daily lives are over scheduled and hectic. Vacation gives us a chance to get away from all of that. During your staycation, remove all the things you think you have to do from your schedule. Only keep those things that are absolutely necessary. Remember, it’s a staycation, and you’ve committed to not making the week just like every other week. Set a few goals and activities for the week, but if you feel like breaking the schedule to take the long way home or spend the afternoon at a cafe then go ahead and do it without feeling guilty.
Slow Down
Some people like to pack as many activities into a vacation as possible. I think it’s a good idea to slow things down a little. An aggressive schedule often induces stress and disappointment if you don’t achieve everything on the list. During your staycation, make an exerted effort to slow down your pace. If you need to go to the grocery store, go to a farmer’s market instead. Stroll through the market and pick up fresh produce, meat and baked goods. This is much more pleasant than rushing through the same, ole grocery store as fast as possible. While you’re out, stop at a cafe to enjoy a cup of coffee instead of drinking it in your car. When you get back home, make an appetizer to enjoy with a glass of wine before cooking the main course. So many options!
Splurge A Little
If you’re like most of us, you often splurge a little while on vacation. Since you’re staying home and not spending money on hotels and/or airfare, you might be able to use that savings to spend on that restaurant you love but only save for special occasions. Eating meals at restaurants instead of at home is good way to enhance your staycation experience. Give yourself a break from cooking all your meals and when you do cook, it will feel like less of an everyday chore. Aside from food, think about buying a new outfit, shoes or bike that you’ve been eyeing. A little retail therapy never hurt anyone.
When you start to get your creative wheels turning, you’ll find lots of fit and fun things to do at home, so don’t feel like you can’t enjoy vacation just because you’re not going on a trip. Life is all about enjoying what you have and making the best of your current situation. I’d love to hear about the fun staycations you’ve created, so drop a note in the comments section or email me at fitfuntravel247@gmail.com. Enjoy!