Enjoy Your Home Over the Holidays
The holiday season is a great time to celebrate all of the things we’re thankful for and get together with our friends and family. It can also be a time of obligations, travel, and stress. For some, it’s an opportunity to stay home and enjoy a few days off. As your Realtor® in Brookings, SD, we came up with some “staycation” ideas and fun ways to enjoy your home over the holidays.
What is a staycation? Essentially, it’s a vacation while remaining at home. It’s time spent doing activities at your house or in your hometown. But most importantly, it’s time spent away from your normal, day-to-day life.
A staycation can totally change your perspective, giving you a sense of gratitude for the things you have, and the beauty is you can spend this time however you wish: Learning something new; Rediscovering an old hobby; Starting a DIY home project; Exploring your hometown; Anything! The best part about a staycation is it doesn’t have to cost much (if any) money—if you don’t want it to—and the possibilities are truly endless.
Sounds like a good idea, right? Are you ready to get away without going away? Then clear your schedule (especially important if you work from home), make sure you’re in a vacation state of mind, and above all, enjoy the activities you choose!
Home Sweet Home
If your staycation is limited to staying in your home, don’t worry! This just might be the funnest way to spend your time off. Whether you have a family, a roommate, or you’re single, nearly all of the activities listed below can be done either by yourself or with loved ones.
Movie Night or Matinee With Family/Friends
- Start that superhero franchise your friend has been begging you to watch
- Put on your favorite, feel-good flick that you’ve seen eight times already
- Find a new series from your preferred streaming service to binge-watch
Game Night With Family/Friends
- Buy a new, interactive game to play with your friends
- Break out a classic board game to play with the family
- Buy a new video game or revisit a favorite title from your collection
Fun in the Kitchen
- Cook a meal you have never made before
- Master an old recipe
- Learn how to make homemade ice cream or decorate a cake
- Not a culinary expert? Try your hand as a mixologist
DIY Project (Big or Small)
- Plant a garden or flower bed
- Build or buy a fire pit for the backyard
- Upgrade your patio furniture
- Paint a room, kitchen cabinets, end table, etc.
- Restore a piece of furniture
Home Spa Day
- New bubble baths and skincare products to test out
- New towels
- Self manicures and pedicures
- Scented candles
- Favorite drink
Virtual Visits
Did your recent travel plans get interrupted? Or worse yet, did you actually have to call and cancel a flight and hotel reservation for a highly-anticipated vacation? Regardless, this staycation idea only requires your computer and an Internet connection. From virtual visits to online classes, this staycation is ideal for anyone who wants to use technology to bring the world to them.
Virtual Family Reunion
This may take a bit of planning and coordinating of schedules, but catching up with loved ones might be exactly what you need. A group visit with siblings, grandparents, cousins, etc. can be a lot of fun and you can take it to the next level by combining the call with happy hour. Pull up your preferred video conferencing app and start sending out invites!
Virtual Vacation
For this staycation idea, you can literally travel anywhere in the world while sitting on the couch in your living room. You can visit iconic landmarks and monuments, tour historic castles, check out the world's most renowned art galleries and museums, go on a safari, see a concert, or simply explore different cities. If you have a smart TV, display these virtual destinations on the big screen to really bring these places to life.
Online Classes
Do you love to learn? There are tons of free online courses available from top educational institutions and companies. Spend your staycation learning a new language, culinary skill, musical instrument, computer program, or whatever your heart desires. The possibilities for this option are limitless.
Explore Your Hometown
As we mentioned, you may be tired of staying indoors, but you might also be sick of your house or apartment altogether. Understandable, considering your living space could be doubling as your office and none of us should feel like we’re at work 24 hours a day. It’s time to summon your inner Lewis and Clark! If you’ve lived in the same city for an extended period of time it’s easy to frequent the same establishments and take their best attributes for granted. Use your staycation to rediscover your hometown and all it has to offer.
- Find a new restaurant (maybe something out of your comfort zone)
- Tour a local winery or brewery
- Explore the shops and eateries of a nearby town
- Visit a local park or landmark
- Go to a drive-in movie
Lend a Helping Hand
You may already be the generous type who donates your time to improve the community or help others in need, but if you haven’t tried this it can be a very rewarding experience. Not only will volunteering get you out of the house, but it can also provide you with a healthy dose of gratitude and fulfillment. Plus, most of these activities have a social aspect to them, which gives you the chance to interact with other helpful people like yourself.
- Serve at a food pantry
- Deliver meals to those in need
- Participate in community cleanups
- Volunteer at an animal shelter
You may have noticed that some of these staycation activities could fall under multiple categories but you get the idea. This is simply a list of ideas to help get the ball rolling. The key is to make this feel like a real vacation. That means you should be more spontaneous, rock a new hat or outfit you wouldn’t usually wear, try a different hairstyle—whatever it takes to break out of your daily routine.