Holidays cost a fair bit, and with the economy the way it is at the moment a lot of people are trying to find alternative options that don’t cost so much. One idea we had was the thought of a ‘Holiday at Home’. How would it work? Well, we think it might work like this:

Book a week off work – just like you would if you were going on holiday somewhere exotic.

Instead of booking your hotel & a hire car, book yourself into your very own home for a week, and relax in the pleasure of knowing you’ll not be getting frustrated hitting the windscreen wiper button every time you try to turn left.

Now sit down with a cuppa and look at what there is to do in your holiday destination…. Contact the local tourist board or look on your town’s website and see what they’d be recommending to people if they didn’t live here and were holidaying here, ask them to send you some brochures and leaflets. Find all the interesting places to visit and things to see just as you might if you were away on holiday. Make your itinerary of what you’d like to do, and plan for your holiday – buy yourself that nice outfit for when you go to the nightclub, that swim suit for the beach etc. just like you would if you were going away – remember this IS still a holiday!

When it comes time for your holiday, treat it as you would if you were away, have meals out, pack up packed lunches, get the odd takeaway. Have days out – at the beach, going shopping, visiting museums and places of interest, take a tour bus round town to see the sights. Laze in the park, feed the ducks, even buy yourself the odd souvenir, and take some photos for your holiday album.

What will the difference be? Well, firstly you’ll have explored your local area in much more depth than you probably would think of doing otherwise. You won’t have had to pay for a plane or train to get somewhere, you won’t have spent a fortune on a hotel, or wasted a day or two travelling there and back. The similarities will be that you’ll have had fun days out to places, seen some sights, and relaxed on your holiday.

The best bit about a holiday at home? When you come back, you don’t have to worry about how you’re going to pay for it!