Home Stay cations

[Smurfysmiles]

With everyone talking about foreign exotic vacations, why not post your best/favorite stay cation here? What did you do? What was your favorite part?
The last time I went on one was in ND when I was making a tourism type page for Fargo (for my final graduation project) that advertised different types of stay cations (Girl''s day out, specifically for families with children, etc.) Well I couldn''t very well advertise it if it wasn''t true so I went on one by myself and on one with some friends. I went biking by the river, got my nails done, went out for a fancy dinner and drinks downtown, went dancing, went shopping in a part of town i hadn''t been to before, saw some historic landmarks/museums, saw a movie at the really old movie theater, and a couple other things. It was really great

 

[Elmorton]

We''ve only been living in our current city for 2 years, but DH and I are all about staycations.

Sometimes we form a weekend itinerary of things we''ve never done in our city but hear are cool activities. My favorite staycation was one in late summer where we went to lunch on the waterfront, explored the downtown, and hopped around on the water taxi and used that to get around instead of our car. We spent the whole weekend with our phones off just having a great time running around together and having fun - no errands allowed.

We also take advantage of the things near-ish to us, but not directly in town. I love Galena, Illinois (Italia goes here, too, I believe - it''s not that long of a drive from Chicago), and frankly, I think most people have a neat small-town destination within an hour of them. A friend of mine lives in AZ, and she has a spot where she and her DH will wander off to that sounds very similar.

Amish or other small religious communities like Amish can provide a neat staycation - typically really good food, learning about another culture, etc - I grew up near a Amish settlement, so there was a ton of neat touristy (and less touristy stuff if you knew how to find it) to do there.

Any college town can be a fun staycation - hang out at all the fun spots and be a fan, even if it''s not your alma mater. DH and I did this at the nearest college town one weekend last winter, and it was great.

We''ve also talked about just staying at a hotel one weekend and going out for dinner and a show or something - sometimes just getting out of your own house just for a night can feel like a really special treat. Our city has a staycation weekend in the winter where the hotels and restaurants provide discounts. Use your city''s website/tourism commission if you have one, and you can find all sorts of fun deals etc.

I also use tripadvisor.com for travel advice about my own city. Sounds strange, but I''ve found all sorts of interesting things to do/places to go by using tripadvisor.

 

[Smurfysmiles]

Date: 1/16/2010 10:13:07 PM
Author: Elmorton
go), and frankly, I think most people have a neat small-town destination within an hour of them.


Any college town can be a fun staycation - hang out at all the fun spots and be a fan, even if it''s not your alma mater. DH and I did this at the nearest college town one weekend last winter, and it was great.

For us that is Ft. Collins, we usually go once a month, it takes about 1/4 of a tank of gas round trip and they are the only town in the state that has hu hot! There''s a ton of little shops to go to in historic downtown and a really great cooking shop, we always go there and get a fun gadget to try (last time it was some weird silicon pads for grabbing things, love em!) Also we drive through my sister''s town to get there so on the way back we usually stop by to say hello and play catch up and see our nephew Also in the summer there are usually people outside the bars singing guitar, tons of street performers! We also love going to Boulder which is about the same distance. Pearl Street in the summer on a weekend is fabulous, tons of street performers, people selling ice cream outside, everyone eating on the patios outside.
We live about an hour from Estes Park and we are DYING (not literally) to spend a night in the Stanley Hotel, how fun would that be! Also every year on Halloween and New Years Eve they have masquerade balls there

 

[charbie]

Smurphy....love ft. Collins, and boulder!

So after I wrote about the hopes that hubby and I could go on a great vaca this year, we actually talked it over and decided to do a bunch of little trips over the next year, I think. We have a nice little nest egg saved up that we have decided to use for some home renovations (bathroom starts tomorrow!) And with him starting the new job and not having tons of time off, it might just work out better this way.

While there is a lot to do in our town (columbus, ohio) we do explore it on a regular basis and have done most of the big things here. About an hour away tho, there are the "hocking hills" and great little state parks where you can rent cabins or houses. Its far enough out that you cant get cell phone reception, and there is great hiking around. We bring our own food in, and just do fun activities! Or get some friends together and get a big huge house to rent!

We also are going to the hills of tennessee and n. Carolina in february to visit some friends, but also will make a stop in gatlinburg, which is a tourist trap like none other in the smokey mountains, but cozy nonetheless.

The more we talk about it, I''m really stoked to have a few mini trips\staycations!

 

[yssie]

FI and I live in CA, our families are in Northern Baltimore and NJ. We go back East every so often to visit, and while we''re there our families visit each other, so my family and I have been seeing the sights of FI''s childhood neighbourhood, and FI and family tour my parents'' area. It''s been really interesting to see the places I''ve taken for granted over the years from a stranger''s perspective!


I''ve also been reading up on local history so I''m somewhat competent as a tourguide

I must say, it''s been a fascinating experience. There''s so much history that I can''t believe I was completely unaware of! Would''ve made for some really interesting projects in highschool, if only I''d cared to read up then

 

[noelwr]

if I lived in the States, I would definitely rock the stay ''cations because you guys have so much great stuff to do. I''m easily satisfied just going to a mall. plus you have many affordable places to get really good food.

where I live is really boring (unless you''re a tourist) and it''s expensive to go out. so any time I have to be at home cooking does not constitute a vacation for me.

once in a while we drive down to the south of Holland and go to a thermal spa. all other spas in Holland require you to be naked, but at this one it is mandatory to have on bathing suits, plus it sources it''s water from a natural spring. maybe we''ll spend the night some time and make it a stay ''cation.

 

[elrohwen]

Well, just last night DH and I went out and did some fun stuff in our area. I used to live within walking distance of the Lond Island Sound and we'd walk down to one of the parks and walk along the coast. Now we're about 50min north of there, so we rarely go. Yesterday we went down and visited two parks - I just love New England beaches in the winter! It was above 40 degrees and such a pretty day. Then we had an early dinner at this amazing rib place that we also used to visit more often. We definitely don't do enough stuff like that. Next weekend I'm hoping to visit another town near us that we've never been to. There are so many cute towns in CT (except the one we live in) and I like just walking around them and checking out the shops.

I also want to visit Hartford to get these steamed burgers I saw on Man vs Food

and visit New Haven to try New Haven-style pizza (which my old co-workers from New Haven always said was the best pizza in the world).

Wine tasting is another favorite activity. When we drive to MIL's house, we always stop in the Finger Lakes to visit our college and our fav wineries. There are some wineries in CT - they're a bit further apart and make for a less fun wine tour, but it's still a good time.

Another great trip we took was for DH's birthday the first year we were dating. We drove up to Mystic, CT and stayed in a cute little hotel. There are all sorts of antique ships, cute nautical shops, an aquarium, and other fun stuff. We still talk about that trip!

 

[Blair138]

Date: 1/16/2010 10:13:07 PM
Author: Elmorton

We also take advantage of the things near-ish to us, but not directly in town. I love Galena, Illinois (Italia goes here, too, I believe - it''s not that long of a drive from Chicago), and frankly, I think most people have a neat small-town destination within an hour of them.

Ditto Galena! We have gone a bunch of times and rented houses with friends in Eagle Ridge and stayed in a B&B by ourselves. They have a great little downtown area, a winery, fun haunted tours, historic tours, and really awesome restaurants. I love it in the winter and in the fall, and it is so gorgeous there.

The town that we live in has a really nice downtown area that we like to hang out at too, they have awesome summer festivals where they close the streets down and have music and food.

 

[Smurfysmiles]

Date: 1/17/2010 10:10:28 AM
Author: elrohwen

I also want to visit Hartford to get these steamed burgers I saw on Man vs Food

Omigosh I know what you are talking about!

There''s a restaurant by us that was on man vs. food too, it''s a huge omelet place but it doesn''t look very good

There''s another one that was on some show, probably the travel channel and it''s called the buckhorn exchange. roosevelt used to eat there all the time and it was the first bar (saloon then i guess) to be established in denver! They have animal heads on the wall and you just point at what you want to eat lol, they have all the normal stuff but also weird stuff like ostrich, moose, alligator, etc. I''d love to try it sometime

 

[BeachRunner]

Date: 1/16/2010 11:34:15 PM
Author: Smurfyimproved

Date: 1/16/2010 10:13:07 PM

Author: Elmorton

go), and frankly, I think most people have a neat small-town destination within an hour of them.



Any college town can be a fun staycation - hang out at all the fun spots and be a fan, even if it''s not your alma mater. DH and I did this at the nearest college town one weekend last winter, and it was great.

For us that is Ft. Collins, we usually go once a month, it takes about 1/4 of a tank of gas round trip and they are the only town in the state that has hu hot! There''s a ton of little shops to go to in historic downtown and a really great cooking shop, we always go there and get a fun gadget to try (last time it was some weird silicon pads for grabbing things, love em!) Also we drive through my sister''s town to get there so on the way back we usually stop by to say hello and play catch up and see our nephew Also in the summer there are usually people outside the bars singing guitar, tons of street performers! We also love going to Boulder which is about the same distance. Pearl Street in the summer on a weekend is fabulous, tons of street performers, people selling ice cream outside, everyone eating on the patios outside.

We live about an hour from Estes Park and we are DYING (not literally) to spend a night in the Stanley Hotel, how fun would that be! Also every year on Halloween and New Years Eve they have masquerade balls there

My husband and I really like the Fort. We have friends that live in that area, so we visit about once per month. It does have the cutest little downtown area; I may be a little biased as we saw it all decorated for Christmas, it was TOO cute!

I can''t wait for all the music, beer festivals, hiking, and outdoor activities Denver will present this Spring/Summer.

 

[Smurfysmiles]

I saw it at Christmastime too! DH made fun of me for getting so excited about all the lit up snowflakes in the tree but I didn''t care lol

 

[BeachRunner]

Date: 1/17/2010 1:58:35 PM
Author: Smurfyimproved
I saw it at Christmastime too! DH made fun of me for getting so excited about all the lit up snowflakes in the tree but I didn''t care lol

Yeah, it was too cute. Did you see the tiny ice skating rink as well? my hubs and I don''t know if we want to stay in Denver, and Fort Collins is a contender for sure as it''s more our pace.

 

[Smurfysmiles]

Date: 1/17/2010 3:17:33 PM
Author: BeachRunner

Date: 1/17/2010 1:58:35 PM

Author: Smurfyimproved

I saw it at Christmastime too! DH made fun of me for getting so excited about all the lit up snowflakes in the tree but I didn''t care lol

Yeah, it was too cute. Did you see the tiny ice skating rink as well? my hubs and I don''t know if we want to stay in Denver, and Fort Collins is a contender for sure as it''s more our pace.

Yes we did see it! We actually live in Centennial and they just built an outdoor mall by us and they had pretty much the same decorations and an ice skating rink. They did a thing where they lit up all the lights at the same time and santa came to visit!!! Here''s a picture of all the kids right after the lights got lit

I went with a friend of mine and we stopped for pizza at this AWESOME pizza place and had a few glasses of wine to keep us warm while we waited outside

 

[Smurfysmiles]

oops

 

[Smurfysmiles]

santa

 

[dragonfly411]

Smurfy that picture is hysterical!

 

[Smurfysmiles]

Date: 1/18/2010 4:52:18 PM
Author: dragonfly411
Smurfy that picture is hysterical!

Hey, if you had had 3 glasses of wine and got to see santa, you would be excited too! lol i even got a candy cane

i didn''t sit on his lap though, didn''t think dh would like that much haha i would have asked for diamonds for xmas if i had though lol

 

[rhbgirl24]

We live in NJ, so once in a while we will hit some attractions in Philly or NYC b/c its a short drive to either. We''ve been really busy and hectic lately, so I''m thinking we need a staycation soon!

 

[Smurfysmiles]

Date: 1/19/2010 9:13:14 AM
Author: rhbgirl24
We live in NJ, so once in a while we will hit some attractions in Philly or NYC b/c its a short drive to either. We''ve been really busy and hectic lately, so I''m thinking we need a staycation soon!

Oooh you guys are lucky to be surrounded in philly cheesesteaks!

lol

 

[dragonfly411]

I''m not a new bride, but I feel like this topic is more universal.

Our favorite stay cation is to go camping just outside of town. The place we camp is located right on a spring fed river, so we can go kayaking. We usually split the campsite rental with SO''s aunt, and we all bike, hike, camp, enjoy smores, kayak and swim. It''s a lot of fun, and it has a lot of wildlife. I like to bike on their longer 5 mile trail, and to jog on the main road in in the mornings.

 

[purselover]

This past weekend we spent the night in Providence so that was a bit of a staycation we went out to a nice dinner and were able to enjoy the hot tub and pool at the hotel. Since it''s an off peak time we got ridiculously low rate at a nice hotel. We also do a lot of day trips to wineries in the area which is a personal favorite of mine or to the beach in the summer.

 

[Bliss]

You know, we had a mini-staycation last night without even realizing it! DH said he had a surprise for me and took me to the Brooklyn Bridge. We'd never walked across it before but I always wanted to do that with him. It was so beautiful! Then we ended up eating at Grimaldi's which had the longest line outside I'd ever seen. C-c-c-ccoold! But worth it! Mmmmm, cannoli. Then we went back to Manhattan and watched Up in the Air. It was a great day spent in Brooklyn, which I found charming and sweet. There are so many fun things to do - I'm inspired now!

 

[Amandine]

I second the camping! DH and I didn''t take a regular vacation this last year (its hard to get away when you are starting a business!), but we went several times camping in the north Georgia mountains with the dogs. Loved it. I camped a lot as a kid with my family, and DH had been too, but this was his first time not being in a motorhome.

We joined the Friends of Georgia State Parks, and plan to go more this summer, too. Its lovely, peaceful, and inexpensive (once you have all the gear, anyway!).