This following is a post by MPFJ staff writer, Jeff. Jeff writes about sustainable living and finances at his website, Sustainable Life Blog. Jeff really enjoys traveling with his wife as much as he can, to wherever he can.
It’s March, and that means it’s almost spring break for those of you in school or those of you with school age children. Unfortunately, I’m neither and don’t get any time off, but that doesn’t mean that it’s not any fun to day dream and research about vacations I would take if I could.
A Matter of Time
One of the first things that I look for when planning a vacation is how much time I have. Many on spring break have a week (9 days if you count both weekends) but not everyone wants to be away from home for that long. It doesn’t leave a lot of time for you to get settled back into school and work or take care of any small things around the house before you hit the road.
This is a common trap to fall into, and I’ll admit it happens to me all the time. I went on a two week vacation once, and gave myself exactly half a day before I had to go back to work again. I was scrambling the rest of the week to get caught up with housework and other things.
Picking The Right Place
There are plenty of great places that you can go to, and even more so when the weather is warm. My favorite thing to do on vacation is go camping or spend time outdoors. In March, the weather may be a bit cold for tent camping, but there’s probably a scenic area (like the forest service or recreation.gov) near you where you can rent a cabin or something similar to stay in for a few days. Once you get the lodging and travel costs taken care of, you can soak up all the time you need in nature and enjoy the free entertainment it provides.
Of course, if that’s a bit out of your price range, considering doing a few “staycations“. If you’re unfamiliar with the term, a staycation is where you stick around your local area, and do “touristy” things that you have not done yet, or have not had a chance to do up to this point. I can’t tell you how many times that I’ve gone to visit friends in other cities and asked about going to a specific place, only to have them respond with something similar to “we’ve lived here X years and have never been there”. You can check out local museums, an art show or perhaps a local play.
The last time I tried this, I went on a “food tour” and found a bunch of awesome restaurants and had a little bit to eat at each one. I really enjoyed the food tour, and I didn’t have to deal with the major expense of a vacation. There’s also no travel headaches to deal with, like airport parking and long lines.
Relax on the Cheap
I’ve never found a reason for vacations to be difficult on the pocketbook, but sometimes people can make them that way. Getting away and spending time with those that you care about is what matters, not where you go or what you’ll be doing. Focus on the right things when you’re vacationing, and you can easily save a bit of money too.
How about you all? What sort of things do you like to do for spring break that can also help you save a little money?
Share your experiences by commenting below!
***Photo courtesy https://www.flickr.com/photos/tomronworldwide/16048660691/
