Ever watched an amazing summer movie with your friends and wished you could recreate the spectacular stuff happening onscreen? The blowout parties, the cross-country road trips, the late-night stargazing with a campfire and s’mores? Sadly, we don’t all have super-rich parents like Annie and Hallie in The Parent Trap, and horseback riding in Napa Valley would take a big chunk out of your Starbucks budget for the upcoming semester. Instead, we’ve dreamed up some inexpensive “staycation” ideas so you can have picture perfect summer fun without breaking the bank.
1. Take a Mini Road Trip
Road trips are the bread and butter of summer spontaneity. There’s nothing better than rolling down the windows and singing along to the radio with your best buds as you speed off towards who-knows-where. Unfortunately, the cost that comes with hauling your pals across state lines rises the farther you go; you’ll have to pay for gas, food, and lodging (because no one wants to be the person forced to sleep in the trunk!). If you’re lacking in money or vehicular transport, a mini road trip can satisfy your craving for living young, wild, and free. Plan out a bike trip to a local spot your friends are interested in scoping out instead. Pack a picnic and your iPod speakers (be sure to bring these things in a backpack if you don’t have a basket) to give the illusion of the radio. As for the destination, if Yellowstone Park is out of reach, check out the woods on the edge of town. If you’re dead set on Venice Beach, try a trip to the lake a few miles away. It’s all about making your own adventure!
2. Host a Dinner Party
If you’re looking for a way to collaborate with your friends on a fun project while also devouring delicious food your mom would be proud of, host a dinner party with your pals. Skeptical? Don’t worry, this isn’t your grandma’s dinner party—no need for expensive crystal glasses and cloth napkins (unless you want to be a little extra fancy)! Just head online to websites like Food Network and Food & Wine for quick, easy recipes. Depending on your skill level, you can whip up everything from homemade guacamole dip to strawberry salad to honey chicken kebabs! If you’re not that skilled in the kitchen, make things more collaborative by inviting your friends to all cook together.
You can even dream up a theme! Ask everyone to dress in ‘60’s fashions for a Mad Men vibe, or don a flapper dress for a Great Gatsby-themed evening. Just add cheap candles from your local convenience store, paper utensils, and a warm midsummer evening, and you’ve got the perfect recipe for a delicious, inexpensive night in.
3. DIY Outdoor Cinema
One more argument against modern technology: the disappearance of the incredible coolness of both the drive-in movie theater and the outdoor movie, those staples of mid-20th century teenage fun. Why not bring it back with the help of your friends? Ask around and see who has a backyard which faces a part of the house that’s large and blank; in other words, big enough to accommodate a projected image. The next step might take some technological expertise, but see if your local video or tech store or a website like Rentacomputer.com can rent you a projector that hooks up to your laptop. Additionally, your local library may be able to lend you this equipment, so check this option as well. If all else fails, see which of your friends has the largest laptop screen, minimize your guest list a bit, and watch it from her computer—it’s the outdoors part that counts, anyways!
All that’s left to do is to invite your friends, wait till it’s dark, ask your guests to volunteer to bring popcorn and drinks, and then pop in a movie of your choice!
4. Kiddie Pool Party
So maybe you don’t own an amazing Rhode Island Mansion a la Taylor Swift and don’t have unlimited access to the ocean. So what? You can make oceans of fun in your own backyard! All you’ll need for the perfect pool party is a few inflatable kiddie pools, which you can buy for cheap at Target and fill to the brim with your garden hose. Now you just need to give the pool a few grown-up updates to keep things fun for your friends! Serve margaritas if you’re 21+ and some cool snacks like watermelon. Rework the classic fall-themed game bobbing for apples by filling your mini pool with oranges or limes and seeing who can pick up the most with their teeth in a minute. Also, you can fill a pool with bubble bath to spark an instant foam fight! Be sure to pick out the perfect bikini, encourage your pals to do the same, and crank up the radio!
5. Make Your Own Petting Zoo
It is a proven scientific fact (note: not exactly proven) that the only thing better than summer is puppies, kittens, and other small fluffy things. If you put them all together, you’ll have a recipe for awesomeness! Hit up your Facebook friend list and your cell phone contacts and seek out friends with pets—small pets, big pets, scaly pets, furry pets, any kind of pet that you’d like to play with—and invite them to contribute in a DIY petting zoo! Set up a small enclosure in your backyard or a local park (if you can get permission) and fill it with local neighborhood pets for an hour or two. Spread the word to your friends who don’t own animals—who wouldn’t want to play with a cute puppy for an hour? Plus, who knows—maybe your cat will make some new friends.
The summer months can be amazing, but all that free time can be daunting, and sometimes it drives us into our beds with Netflix and a smoothie. Hopefully these ideas inspire you to liven things up with your friends in ways you hadn’t thought of before, whether it be with a quick bike ride or a fabulous dinner party surrounded by candles and fireflies. Summer goes by faster than you think, collegiettes. When finals roll around once again this fall, you’ll want the memories you look back on to be unique, so get creative, and have fun!