Why We Spend Our Vacation at Home {and maybe you should too!}

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stay·ca·tion

ˌstāˈkāSHn/

noun

informal
noun: staycation; plural noun: staycations; noun: stay-cation; plural noun: stay-cations
  1. a vacation spent in one’s home country rather than abroad, or one spent at home and involving day trips to local attractions.

 

As a working mom, I’m often a bit jealous of the laid back, relaxing summers that families with a parent that stays at home seem to enjoy, and often equally envious of the big vacations many other families seem to manage.

Due to various circumstances, both logistical (3 kids ages 5 and under) and financial (again, 3 kids ages 5 and under), our family doesn’t really “do” summer vacations, but we have come to embrace our “staycations” — vacations here at home.

This year is the fifth year our family has opted for a staycation, and I look forward to this type of vacation more and more each year. It’s time the kids and I spend reconnecting with friends, enjoy familiar places, and explore new ones. We save money, and gain so many priceless memories.

What’s So Great About a Staycation?

No Packing

I mean, I might pack a beach or pool bag. No packing suitcases and hoping I didn’t forget something. No unpacking at a hotel and hoping we don’t leave something behind when we pull out the parking lot. No piles of laundry to rush and try to do once we get back home.

Save Money

During a staycation, I might budget for a trip to the Lake Murray Dam Beach ($3 per car) or a lunch out or two. I may even splurge on a museum trip. But it’s nothing like the money we would spend on a hotel, eating out, bringing convenience food with us, and all the other various things that add up.

Plenty of Things to Do Right Here

Did you know we have a Fire Truck Museum? Or that the South Carolina State Museum is open until 10 p.m. on Tuesdays during the summer so you can view the night sky in the Conservatory (at no extra charge)? There are State and National Forests (Sesquicentennial Park, Harbison State Forest, Congaree National Park that cost $5 or less to get in). All have amazing trails and other things available to do that could easily take up a whole day. There is a list of common inside activities and outdoor ones, and most of these will not cost you much. Check out this site for a listing of pick-your-own fruits — a great way to spend a morning! There is so much to explore within a 30 to 45 minute drive. Staycation is the perfect time to take advantage of all the Midlands has to offer!

Picking blueberries at Berry Hill Farm: www.billsberries.com
Picking blueberries at Berry Hill Farm

Uninterrupted Routine 

It’s summer, but as a family with both parents working, our routines don’t change much when summer rolls around. Staycation means we can keep to as much of a routine as we normally do, which is helpful around wake ups and bedtimes (and results in an easier transition when “vacation” is over and we have to go back to work).

How to Make Your Staycation Great

Now that you are convinced, or at least intrigued by the idea, here are some ways to make the most out of your staycation…

Choose Your Time Wisely

I take the week of 4th of July off from work. It has its advantages: not many other people want this week off, it usually only uses 4 days of “Paid Time Off” since one of the days is a company holiday, and it is peak summer time weather (and peak vacation rate season). With a staycation, any week can work well (or sometimes all you need is a long weekend). The downside is, for my job, this time must be requested far in advance, so I can’t change dates if the weather turns ugly.

Don’t Plan Activities Too Far in Advance

I start making plans and contacting friends the week before. For any outside activities, you’ll want to wait until you can get a good gauge on the forecast before planning activities. The South Carolina summer weather can be unpredictable, so have some flexibility. The good thing is, there are lots of activities to choose from and they rarely reach maximum capacity, so changing plans at the last minute is not a big deal.

Schedule Only One Major Activity Per Day

As my kids get older and have more opinions, this means many compromises, but it is worth it to keep the staycation feeling more like a vacation and less like a second job, ferrying kids from one event to another. This also gives you the downtime to attend to all those at home activities that don’t stop just because you took some time off work. Unfortunately, laundry, dishes, and meal-making don’t take a vacation. (Though the meal-making maybe can if you budget for it!)

Check Out the Local Events Calendar

You can find the Columbia one here — which includes festivals, library activity days, farmer’s markets, and more that you may have the opportunity to explore during your normal work week. Columbia SC Moms Blog also posts a Weekend Roundup every Wednesday that includes all the kid-friendly activities happening around the Midlands for the upcoming weekend.

Make the Ordinary Extraordinary

Take your lunch outside for a picnic, or bring it with you wherever you are going. I pack the kids a Lunchable each and call it good. They are inexpensive, and a rare treat for my three. Do part of your bedtime routine outside (because it’s awesome, and the coolest part of the day). Let the kids help you make dessert, or take them out for a treat after dinner.  Sudden rain shower? Go dancing! There are a million ways to make this time special.

A popsicle treat after a busy day
A popsicle treat outside after a busy day

Don’t Sweat it if You Don’t Manage to Get to Everything on Your Itinerary

As much as I look forward to our staycation time, I know there’s no way I’m going to manage to do everything I want to do. It will rain. Or be entirely too hot to be outside. Something will be closed. Or broken. Or a child will throw an epic tantrum. Or I will forget something at home. Or, you know, life. It gets in the way. The important thing is, we are making memories that last a lifetime. Carving out these few days for our staycation and spending quality, unhurried, summertime fun shows my children something that I could never explain to them in a million words. This day is special. They are special. In this moment. Right now.

Whether your staycation is only a couple days, or a whole week (or more), remember the focus is on your family, having fun, and making memories that will last! Have you tried a staycation? What worked for your family?

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Katrina Siron
Katrina is a mom of three great kids and has been married to her first love for nearly 10 years. She’s grateful to have a job that allows her the flexibility to both work from home some days and in the office others. On the surface, Katrina is pretty crunchy – she loves breastfeeding, babywearing, co-sleeping, natural birth, and homeschooling — but still loves her stroller, having her kids in their own beds at some point, her epidural was fantastic, and she’ll be sending the kids through public school. Most of all she loves the fact that we have all these choices, which makes life interesting! One of her favorite experiences was moving to Japan in 2002 to live as an adult dependent with their USMC family. It was an amazing experience, and if it weren’t for that, she probably wouldn’t ever have met my husband.

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