As a Step2 Brand Ambassador, I received a Step2 Naturally Playful Summertime Play Center from Step2 for reviewing for this post. All opinions are mine alone.
A family vacation isn’t in our cards this year. Between time, expenses, and the age of the triplets, it looks like we will be staying close to the house this summer. My daughter is the only kid old enough to realize that we aren’t taking an actual vacation, but I’ve discovered that if I plan lots of fun, local things for her to do, then she is typically okay with it. I believe the modern term to not taking a vacation and hanging close to the house is called a “Staycation.” I’m in the middle of planning Staycation events for us this summer, and today I’m listing a few of the ideas that I’ve complied. Here are 30 Staycation Ideas, and feel free to add your own ideas in the comments section.
An idea that we’ve already implemented is number one: Investing in an outdoor toy that all the kids can enjoy. The kids have built 10 sand castles, and we’ve yet to step foot on the beach. This Step2 Naturally Playful Summertime Play Center is a huge sand box that has an attached picnic table and bench that fits up to four children. It’s like it was made for us!
The Step2 Naturally Playful Summertime Play Center is a larger toy purchase, but in lieu of a destination vacation, I’m glad that we have a new item that our kids will use every day. Believe me, they have!
The built-in picnic table and bench has also made number 15 on the below list a daily occurrence. And it’s not even officially summer yet!
1. Invest in an outdoor toy all the kids can enjoy.
2. Head to a local park.
3. Visit an amusement park.
4. Camp in the backyard.
5. Have a s’mores night.
6. Create an at-home “water park” with water guns, water balloons, water sprinklers, or other water toys.
7. Explore the woods.
8. Visit a local farm.
9. Head to a local children’s museum.
10. Visit a local science center/museum.
11. Plan a day at the zoo or aquarium.
12. Sign up for the summer reading program at the library.
13. Go to a local sporting event. My husband and daughter enjoy going to watch our minor league baseball team.
14. Go fishing.
15. Have an outdoor picnic at home or a park.
16. Plan a huge crafting afternoon with age-appropriate crafts for the kids.
17. Take advantage of local attractions, such as the beach or mountains.
18. Sign up for a membership at a local pool.
19. River tubing or canoeing.
20. Visit a farmer’s market.
21. Visit a local berry farm to pick what berries are in season.
22. Pick out a different new local restaurant to try a few weeks in a row.
23. Plant a flower or vegetable garden as a family.
24. Host a big play date with your kids’ friends.
25. Host a cook-out that’s not for a holiday.
26. Plan a progressive dinner with a few other families. Back at Thanksgiving, I posted about how my husband and I plan progressive dinners for our youth group. They are fun dinners where one family hosts an appetizer, one hosts the main course, and another one hosts a dessert. This could work for families, too!
27. Plan a day visiting garage sales.
28. Movie night or visit a drive-in theater.
29. Create a scavenger hunt for the kids.
30. Go mini golfing or bowling, depending on the age of the kids.
What other Staycation Ideas does your family enjoy?
These are great idea! We also enjoy building a family project; we’ve made our own corn hole games, teepees, bows & arrows, etc. We’ve had a glow party at night and invited a few families to party with us! Sometimes, stay cations are totally the way to go with young kiddos!!!
These are great ideas! My little guy is going to love these, thanks for sharing!
I love all your Staycation ideas! I know that no. 6 (at home water park) would definitely be well received, especially when it’s so hot outside.
I always wanted a sandbox, and the one from Step2 is really cool with the little built in picnic table. =0) Makes for great picnics!
These are wonderful ideas! Sometimes the best vacations are just being at home with the family relaxing and doing great activities like these. They will always remember those later in life. It’s so great for their gross and fine motor skills to. Love active kids!
These are all such great ideas! Everyone could use a staycation!
These are all such great ideas! Thanks so much for sharing!!
What great ideas! Thank you for sharing and know some friends who would benefit from reading this post today too!
I love your ideas! We have little ones, so they won’t know the difference if we don’t go on a family trip this year.
I thought your ideas were things we parents were supposed to do on a daily basis. What do you do with your kids when you are not on a Stayvacation? Around our house those things were our normal, the child was the focus of how to make him/her grow and and enjoy their parents at the same time.
Hi, Charlie! I’m using the term “Staycation” very loosely here. Perhaps “Summer Fun” ideas would have been better? I am sure that many parents do a lot of these things already, but I’m hoping that this list will help jumpstart ideas for those who may be looking for an activity. For families (like us!) that won’t be taking a traditional vacation this year, perhaps they can use one or two of these a week as something for their family to look forward to. Or, for parents who work outside the home and are taking a dedicated week or two off of work, maybe they can plan several of these activities back to back to fill their week. And, honestly, I know it’s easy for parents to get stuck in a rut. For us, we craft,have water fun, and play outside on almost a daily basis, but it’s been ages since we’ve been to one of our state parks! We also do not go to the children’s museum on a daily basis; it’s more of a special activity. So we are going to make sure we get some park time and a visit to the children’s museum in this summer!