What’s a Staycation? How My Family Unwinds at Home

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Vacations with kids are… a lot. Between the packing, planning, pet care, and trying to meet everyone’s needs on the road, it can feel more exhausting than relaxing. Instead, we focus on what matters most—being present, making space to rest, and finding joy in simple moments through an enjoyable staycation. 

A staycation is a good change in scenery that creates a shift in our home afterwards. Things slow down. My kids are more relaxed, and my husband and I get a chance to reset and simply enjoy our time together.

Let me share how we do staycations in my family in North Georgia, and why they’ve become one of our favorite ways to slow down and enjoy each other.

What’s a Staycation?

A staycation is a vacation spent at home or close to home, with a focus on taking a real break from your usual routine without the stress of packing and planning long-distance travel. 

It’s an opportunity to slow down, enjoy time with your family (or yourself), and make time to relax and reset.

Why We Choose Staycations

For us, a staycation means a change of scenery. This isn’t your typical weekend. It’s time to disconnect from the hectic responsibilities of life, such as work emails, piled dishes, and errands, and focus on relaxation, presence, and peace.

We choose staycations because they don’t require months of prep or a travel budget. Our children are still young, and sometimes it’s too expensive to travel far. We don’t have to book dog sitters or stress over road trip meltdown. I don’t even want to talk about going on a plane with four kids and a dog.

Sometimes the idea of staying local is peace of mind, knowing that we’re close to home when everything becomes too much for our little ones.

Staycations give us the gift of flexibility. We can be spontaneous or go back to something familiar. There’s so much we can do—or do nothing at all and remain in our pajamas.

What Our Staycations Look Like

In our home, staycations aren’t strict or meticulously planned. They vary depending on the day, events, the climate, and everyone’s mood. There are days that are sluggish and quiet, and days that are busy and full of having a good time.

Here’s how we shape our staycations around different kinds of days.

Slow-Living on the Weekends

Weekends can easily blend into the rest of the week when you work from home. So when we decide to make it a staycation weekend, we do a few simple things to set it apart.

We might wake up a little later, take our time to make pancakes or waffles from scratch, and let the day unfold naturally. Living in North Georgia gives us the luxury of exploring new parks and trails. Our children are not fond of going on outdoor walks, but a new park always initiates a spark in their steps and curiosity.

We also enjoy exploring new stores and restaurants, especially in local towns we are familiar with. Slow weekends are the perfect time to learn and try something new. There’s no pressure to be anywhere at a certain time.

Rainy Staycations

Have you ever hiked up Kennesaw Mountain on a rainy day? I recommend going on a light rainy day during the fall season—it’s less muggy. The higher you climb, the more you feel as if you’re emerging into the clouds. It is a beautiful site!

The climb was treacherous, but the scenery was worth every step and groan.

Sunny Days

Sunny staycations offer so many opportunities, and we’re definitely outside!

Staying Home

The kids will stay out for hours if I bring out sidewalk chalk, a large bucket of water and water toys, and bikes.

Sometimes, I set up a kiddie pool right on the driveway for the kids to soak in. We’ll set up a picnic blanket in the yard, set up our lawn chairs, and just enjoy being outside together. 

Here are some fun activities to do with your kids at home.

Check Out Local Events

However, these days are also perfect for local events! I’m always checking and saving social media for local events in advance.

Make sure to check out your local park events for movie nights, barbecue concerts, and art crawls. Some parks will also host holiday events!

Check your local downtown area (and neighboring cities, too) for fun events. Some events in my area are art events, different cons (Momocons, Animecons, Dragoncons etc), cultural festivals, seasonal festivals, and wine festivals.

Go to the Beach

My little family is always down to go to the beach on a beautiful sunny day. Surrounded by mountains and lakes, we are privileged to constantly explore as much as we want.

The furthest we’ll drive out is two hours, which gives us so many options to explore.

Local Orchards

Some orchards are open from spring til fall. Our favorite orchard to visit is Mercier Orchards in Blue Ridge. They offer U-Pick depending on what is available, and the experience is always amazing. Sometimes we make it a one-day trip, and sometimes we get an Airbnb so we can have more time to adventure into our favorite shops and explore new ones.

Low Energy Staycations

Some days, we just rest. And, that’s okay.

Again, it’s nice to settle in a different space for a change of scenery. We’ve rented out Airbnbs and cabins before during Sprink Breaks just to relax.

We keep it slow—no alarms, no pressure, no expectations. I might read for a bit, doodle, or journal while the kids play nearby. Sometimes we will go out and explore the new place. A new house on a new property is always fun to explore.

If they’re calm, we’ll all pile into the bed or couch with snacks and watch an anime series. We graze all day, and don’t have to worry about the laundry because it’s literally not here.

Relaxing this way help me feel like myself again. They help my kids reset, too, and it’s a great way to bond. 

Staycations Help Us Reconnect

Every time we have a staycation, I notice the same things: our house feels more peaceful, our kids are calmer, and my husband and I feel more like a team.

Staycations are full of little moments that bring us back to what matters—connection, rest, and fun. We don’t normally plan out staycations, but it is less of a hassle when we do.

My family and I love exploring North Georgia. It’s a great change of pace, especially since my husband and I work from home. And the best part about a staycation is the peace of mind of not being too far away from home. There’s also that low pressure of not trying to fit a ton of activities into an itinerary.

I hope this encourages you to try a staycation. You don’t need to set aside a whole week or have a perfect plan. Just make space to turn off the noise, lean into what feels good, and enjoy what’s already right in front of you.

Sometimes, that’s exactly what we need.