If you have an inclination to enjoy a “staycation” this summer, there are plenty of ways to get away, yet stick around close to home.
Check out these staycation ideas
Check out these staycation ideas
- Amusement parks usually are within a few hours’ drive from most homes. In addition to a host of rides, most parks offer live entertainment and, of course, a wide variety of foods. Canobie Lake Park (Salem, NH), Six Flags New England (Agawam, MA) and Lake Compounce (Bristol, CT) are great local family fun amusement parks.
- Visit a local, state, or national park. You can get into most of these parks for free. And many of them have swimming pools or lakes and camping facilities. There are many local parks that you could visit that are right in your back yard such as Colt State Park (Bristol, RI), or Horseneck Beach State Reservation(Westport, MA). Baxter State Park (Millinocket, ME), Acadia National Park (Bar Harbor, ME) and Cape Cod National Seashore (Wellfleet, MA) are just a few of the best state and national parks in the New England region.
- If you’re fortunate enough to have a zoo or aquarium in your area, check them out. You’ll be entertained and probably will learn a thing or two about critters from the land and the sea. Buttonwood Park Zoo (New Bedford, MA), Roger Williams Zoo (Providence, RI), Mystic Aquarium (Mystic, CT) and New England Aquarium (Boston, MA) are great local zoos and aquariums to visit.
- Strap on your hiking boots and literally go take a hike! Lots of communities have hiking trails these days, as well as biking trails, and they can be accessed for free. For a complete list of Massachusetts trails, click here.
- Crank up your outdoor activities a notch and try geocaching. Geocaching is basically an outdoor treasure hunt using GPS-enabled devices. Participants navigate to a specific set of GPS coordinates and then attempt to find the container, or geocache, hidden at that location. Check to see if there’s a geocaching club in your area for more information and whether they have organized events.
- If indoor sports are more up your alley, head out to your local bowling lanes. Bowl just for the fun of it or organize a friendly roll-off among family and friends.
- It’s the year of the Olympics, so why not hold an Olympic-style event in your backyard? From horse shoe competitions to water balloon tosses, there are lots of ways to celebrate this global spectacle right at home.
- Gather together some poles and bait and go fishing at your favorite watering hole. Or go out on a limb and look for a new fishing spot to try your luck.
- Take in an amateur, semi-pro or professional baseball game or soccer match.
- If you’re into chasing a little white ball around the countryside with sticks in hand, play a round a golf at different courses over three or four days.
- Pitch a tent in your backyard for overnight camping.
- Catch up reading all those books and/or magazines you never seem to get around to cracking open.
- Try your hand at making homemade root beer or dandelion wine.
- Spend the night out at a dinner theater.