What is a staycation?
A staycation as it sounds is a vacation where you stay home as opposed to leaving your home, city, state, or country. You can stay physically inside your home or spend the night in a local hotel.
Compared to hiking at the edge of the world or sipping wine in the Andes Mountains, a staycation might sound lame. But I promise it can be just as fun.
In this post, I give you my top ideas to actually have fun at home! Might sound contradictory as travel bloggers but Kyle and I have a staycation every week we are home – technically because we are homebodies and always have fun together.
Types of Staycations
There are two main ways to do a staycation.
First, you can literally stay at home and not leave. That means the home is the hotel. Dinner is delivered or cooked by you. Second, you can stay in the same city. Stay in a fancy hotel downtown. Dinner at a new restaurant you’ve been dying to try.
Skip below to see my favorite staycation ideas for each. Or, keep reading to maximize your staycation to rival any other vacation.
5 Benefits of Staycations
Now is the perfect time to relax at home.
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- Easily Budget Friendly. When traveling the biggest expenses are the flight and the hotels. Since we are staying home, both of those costs are zero. Freeing up more money for more activities.
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- Fewer crowds. Staycations are all about local experiences. Unless you live on the Las Vegas strip on South Beach Miami, your hometown will be significantly less crowded than a trip to the Eiffel Tower.
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- Less planning stress. I’ve spent countless hours researching my destinations before a trip. (That’s why I spend even more time writing destination guides so you don’t have to). The over-thinker in me is ashamed. I love planning a staycation because the planning is so easy. You are already an expert in your city.
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- Minimal packing. Do you plan every outfit down to the earrings? Or do you stuff everything in your bag 15 minutes before the flight? Either way, it is stressful. There is nothing worse than getting to your destination only to realize you forgot shower shoes. When staying at home everything is literally still in your closet. Don’t even get me started on unpacking.
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- Focused on spending time with your partner. It’s easy to “keep the main thing, the main thing” – enjoying your partner and the time you spend together. By minimizing other distractions, it’s much easier to focus solely on your spouse.
How to take a staycation?
While the planning is significantly less, there is still some planning involved. Depending on what you are doing during your staycation (besides catching up on sleep) will determine what you need to plan and how to prepare.
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- Determine a budget. If you plan to spend the night in a hotel, try a new hobby, or EAT, you need to determine a budget prior to your staycation. After all, this is still a vacation.
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- Plan ideas together. I always plan our travels because I am more organized than Kyle. With a staycation, we can do it together because there aren’t a million details to keep track of. It can be as simple or complicated as we want. This post will give you so many ideas below that you will definitely find one (or more) for your next stay.
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- Be sure to unplug.  Imagine if you were taking a trip to a foreign land but you continually checked your phone. Not fun. I understand taking photos or updating social media but take a break!
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- Separate work from your staycation. The most important point. Because you are staying home, it’s easy to add in cleaning the house and taking calls for work. But be sure to separate work from vacation even if the vacation is to your backyard.
Staycation ideas
We know that there are two main types of staycations – staying at home or staying in the city. I’ve gathered a list of my favorite staycations that Kyle and I regularly do in our home in Atlanta. I love living in Atlanta and plan to always live near the city.
Although we both prefer international trips because they force us to try new activities outside of our comfort zones. We rely on staycations to relax and to connect better.
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- Plan a luxury vacation at a nice hotel across town. Enjoy all the amenities of the hotel and don’t leave the hotel room. After all, this is a couple’s trip. think about it as a mini honeymoon. Get a massage. Visit the pool. Unwind at the sauna.
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- Stay in a themed hotel that fits your personality and location. This can be a historic boutique hotel or a hip-hop hotel or a bed and breakfast ran by its elderly owners. Depending on your city, the options are endless.
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-  Pick a country theme to bring home. If you found this blog, you know that we love to travel (and hopefully you do too). Choose India – order takeout from your favorite Indian restaurant. Rent a Bollywood movie. Dance around to the popular Bollywood choreography.
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- Camp in the backyard. This is my favorite staycation option (because I’m addicted to smores). Pitch a tent. Roast marshmallows. Spend the entire night together outside. Be sure to turn all the lights out in the house and don’t go back to the house until the morning. *Expert tip: if you don’t have a tent, you can still participate. REI will let you rent a tent and sleeping bags for an affordable price.
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- Go for a picnic at a neighborhood park or in the backyard. If camping is too much, plan a simple picnic at sunset or at lunch.
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- Game night at home for 2. Since you have the time, play an entire game of Phase 10. I usually only make it Phase 4. But give it a try and let me know. You can literally play any game you would like.
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- DIY wine or beer tasting. Visit your local wine store or specialty beer garden and buy 5 (or more. because that’s your business). Taste each one and see which ones you like the best. It can be a tradition to keep the house stocked with your favorite.
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- Movie marathon night. Plan to stay up all night with all of the movie theater classics. Watch all of the Harry Potter movies. Watch all of the Avengers movies. Watch all of the Star Wars movies. Keep it to a specific theme and enjoy the night with your favorite person.
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- Art projects at home. Create your own sip and paint night. Using the dining room table, find a picture online, purchase 2 blank canvases, and get to painting.
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- Reminisce over memories. I wish Kyle and I did this more often. Print out photos from your phone and make a photo album. Take turns sharing stories and memories throughout the relationship.
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- Last and not least, unplug and just talk. The most romantic thing you can do for your staycation is to unplug and talk! Think about the last time you did it, and I promise you’ll love it even more.
Staycations can be fun no matter where you live. If for whatever reason, you find yourself at home, I hope you use the ideas above to spend a little more time with your significant other.
Let me know if you’ve ever taken a staycation and what do you love to do.
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