Getting The Most Out Of Your Utah Staycation

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Staycations have become a tradition for many Utah families looking to save money and avoid the stress of long distance travel.

Sticking around town does not have to mean catching up on your laundry or binge watching Netflix. The staycation potential in Utah is limitless.

“We check out new things around town or drive somewhere,” said Utah mom Kristy Hyers. “We were up in Park City last week. We try to get outside a lot.”

Other families love exploring the many nearby state and national parks.

“We go to Canyonlands or Zion and we love doing that a lot,” said Jennifer Pinegar. “It’s a lot of fun.”

Whatever your family loves to do, here is advice to make your close-to-home vacation successful.

HAVE A BUDGET

Many families plan staycations to save money.

For Naomi Brower, an associate professor with Utah State University’s Family and Consumer Science extension who blogs about creating staycation memories, that’s why her first priority is to set a budget.

Brower explains not having one will only cause financial stress.

“It’ll be difficult to keep within our budget and actually save money which is what we’re trying to do,” she said.

HAVE A PLAN

Her next advice is to plan an itinerary so you’re not sucked back into work or chores.

“If we don’t have a plan, often times we don’t do these things that we really want to do together, so we miss out on some opportunities,” Brower said.

Whatever plan you come up with, she suggests you keep it simple and don’t over schedule yourself.

“I would recommend picking a couple of really important activities that you want to do together as a family, and then having some down time,” explained Brower.

Utah mom Kristy Hyers agrees.

“Some days we have specific things in mind and other days we fly by the seat of our pants,” said Hyers. “Kids can be unpredictable too, so sometimes they might make us adjust our plans last minute.”

PRETEND YOU’RE NOT HOME

The best way to keep your many outside obligations at bay during your staycation?

“Pretend you really aren’t at home,” Brower recommends.

Go off the grid. Turn on the “out-of-office” auto response on your work email and do not check the emails.

“If you’re a supervisor at work and you need to approve things… I think that’s okay, said Brower. “You can still do some of those things, but just made sure it’s at a designated time.”

And fill your time with special activities, not your regular chores.

“If I was staying at a fancy resort or hotel, I definitely wouldn’t be doing chores,” said Brower.

DISCONNECT

Consider putting your phone in airplane mode so you’re less tempted to scroll through your social media feeds.

“I think screen time often gets in the way of connecting for a family,” said Brower. “Just focus on being together as a family and make those vacation memories you’re hoping to get.”