ICYMI, spring break is coming up, and it’s coming up fast. I personally can’t believe that there’s about one month left until spring break season, and I know I’m not the only one. In college, there always seems to be some stigma around spring break that requires you to go on some outrageous trip with all of your friends. As fun as this sounds, it can get extremely expensive and isn’t typically in the budget of a college student.
Thankfully, a wild week full of bar hopping on the beach is not the only option for a fun spring break. If you’re near the west coast like me, there’s a lot of road trips that are worth taking, and if you’re closer to the east coast, you are likely within driving distance of some cool cities to explore! So grab some of your friends and start planning with these budget spring break tips and trips!
If you have extreme wanderlust, a road trip is definitely the best trip you could take without breaking the bank. Yes, gas can add up, but if you get a few friends in on it with you, you can ask them to chip in for gas money! A road trip can be especially fun (and cheap!) if you like to camp. There are typically some good campgrounds that are relatively cheap all over the US, so you should be able to find some with any route you take. If camping isn’t your thing, don’t worry! There are so many apps out there now that can find you a cheap place to stay, whether you are planning everything down to the last minute beforehand, or if you need to find a place to crash last minute!
Here are a few of my favorites: ★For those who like to plan - Airbnb Airbnb is a fantastic option for those who like to plan. You can plan out how many people you need to fit and have options of staying in private bedrooms, guest houses, or even entire houses/condos/apartments. You can tailor it to the size of your group and can split the cost between everyone! ★For those who need to find a place to crash - Hotel Tonight Hotel Tonight is a great option for those who need somewhere to crash for a decent price. My dad and I took a road trip from Southern California to Washington a few summers back and used Hotel Tonight almost every night of our road trip. The app is made by Expedia so it filters through all of the best deals for hotels and you can even set a price range for what you’re looking for and can book the room right before you show up!
If you are anywhere near the West Coast, you MUST take this road trip. Personally, this trip is what I have planned for spring break this year and I could not be more excited. It is something that you can take your time doing and make it last the whole week, or you can do it in about 3 days! I took this trip with my dad about five years ago and it is probably my favorite trip that I have ever taken, so I wanted to show some of my favorite spots to my East-Coast-native boyfriend and decided to take this trip again!
What I like so much about this trip is that you can do it in such a short period of time, but still have days packed with activities. I start the trip from Newport Beach and it gets me up to San Francisco in 3 days easily. Here is what my itinerary looks like: ★Day 1: Newport Beach → Cambria When I start this trip, I don’t start on Highway 1, I start on the freeway and get off just before Malibu. I start on Highway 1 in Malibu because it cuts out a lot of travel time trying to get through Huntington Beach and Long Beach, which is where most of the backed up traffic along PCH is. I think that on the way to Cambria it’s fun to stop in Santa Barbara or Ojai Valley. There are a ton of fun shops in both towns and both are very art focused cities, so if you have a creative side, be sure to check them oout along the way!
★Day 2: Cambria → Monterey
While in Cambria, there are a lot of cheap boutique hotels, but beach camping is not too far away if that is what you prefer. Cambria is a fun little beach town that is full of good food, scenic views, and window shopping. If you’re looking to grab brunch and a smoothie on your way out of town, try The Hidden Kitchen! Although it only takes about 2 ½ hours to get from Cambria to Monterey, this will most likely be your most active day. There is so much to see between Cambria and Monterey. Stop at Hearst Castle, or even the Elephant Seal beach in San Simeon. While you’re driving this stretch of highway, you may see some wild zebras that have been released from the Hearst Castle Zoo! This is also the stretch of highway that Big Sur and Bixby Bridge fall along. About an hour north of Hearst Castle, you will find yourself at the beautiful Big Sur beach. Get out and stretch your legs, take a hike, and even camp overnight if you want to explore more of this area! If you decide to keep driving through towards Monterey, you must drive through 17-Mile Drive in Pebble Beach. It costs $10.50 per vehicle, but it is worth the money for the amazing views. I personally love taking this drive during golden hour, and if you plan to spend the day in Big Sur, then you should be getting to Pebble Beach around this time anyways!
★Day 3: Monterey → San Francisco
Monterey to San Francisco is a pretty easy drive. While in Monterey, both lodging and camping are easy and are generally inexpensive. While in Monterey, go to the aquarium or take a walk along the bayside and look for otters! After Monterey, take a drive to Santa Cruise and walk along the pier or visit some of the local surf shops! From here, take a drive up to Half Moon Bay and watch some of the massive waves roll through. If you plan it right in winter, you may be able to catch some of the Mavericks waves after a winter storm a little ways north of Half Moon Bay! This is typically where I would get back onto the freeway and head into the city. There are many cheap hotels and even hostels you can stay in while in San Francisco! If you are a foodie, this is your stop. Grab breakfast at Tartine Bakery, burritos for lunch at El Castillito, and dinner at Nopa. If you want to try all of the food, sign up for a food tour! Visit the piers and the farmers markets that are scattered throughout the city. See the painted ladies houses or take a windy drive down Lombard Street! If you’re into ghost tours, visit Alcatraz! The city has endless activities that are fun for everyone!
★Day 4 (optional): San Francisco → Oregon
I am deciding to go up to Oregon on this trip simply because I miss the PNW and have family that I want to visit. However, if you have not been to the PNW, I highly recommend driving up to Oregon and staying for a night or two. Explore the small towns, explore the beaches, explore the mountains - Oregon has it all! I’m especially excited for this portion of the trip because, I’m not sure what it is about it, but the state of Oregon always makes me feel at peace. The beauty of the state is incredible and it gives off a huge feeling of serenity that I simply could not explain. Some of my favorite spots are Sunriver, Portland, Eugene, and Bend! After spending a night or two here, I’ll head back to Utah just in time for classes!
I am a firm believer that national parks are the way to a persons heart. There is nothing quite like seeing the beauty of this earth in a new place for the first time. And you know what's great about national parks? They're everywhere! did you know that our country is home to 62 national parks? Yes, a lot of them are out towards the west, but there are still 8 on the East Coast and a handful of them in the Midwest! I personally go to school in Utah, so I am very fortunate to have 5 in my state alone, but just because they are far, doesn't mean they aren't accessible. If you have a national park within driving distance, go to it! It's typically $30 per vehicle to enter the park, but you can stay and camp if you make a reservation, or find a nearby campground and explore the surrounding area! If camping isn't your thing, you can typically find a nearby boutique hotel or Airbnb! The world is so incredibly beautiful, so why not go explore it?
If you haven't been to Zion, you have to go at some point in your life. Zion is hands down one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. Camping and nearby lodging is easy to find for cheap prices. I personally could stay and explore this park forever, but for most people, a 3 day trip is perfect!
For hiking, take a walk along the riverside or along the Emerald Pools trail. Visit the Weeping Rock and the Canyon overlook trail. Take a scenic drive along the Mount Carmel Highway and see if you can hold your breath the entire way through the tunnel! Want more of a challenge? Hike through Angels Landing and wade through The Narrows! As long as you love the outdoors, you will love this park!
I personally haven't been To Shenandoah National Park in Virginia yet, but it is definitely on my bucket list! Find a place to lodge or camp at one of the nearby campgrounds - but if you are an East-Coast-Native, be sure to be drinking lots of water because it's a much higher elevation than most East Coast cities!
Take a sunset drive down the Skyline drive and look out along the Blue Ridge Parkway! Take hikes along the Appalachian Trail or the Virginia Creeper Trail. If you're looking for picture perfect spots, visit the Falling Water Cascades or the Shenandoah Caverns!
If you're looking for a spa-like experience on your national park trip, Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas is the place for you! This park is full of spas and hot springs (duh!) that will make this the most relaxing outdoorsy experience of your life. Take a trip to the Quapaw Bathhouse or take a nice stroll along the Grand Promenade. This National park is definitely made to be more of a day trip or spa weekend! Pack your bags and head out for a fun girls trip or a romantic relaxing weekend with a special someone!
This tip is becoming a more popular option for lodging, but I am still going to throw it on this list for those who are not convinced that Airbnb is the future of lodging with big groups. Whether you are caravanning on a road trip or are doing a "staycation" with your friends, Airbnb is always an amazing option. If you're on a trip with a big group of people, you can typically find a place easily so that nobody has to pay more than $50 for lodging.
This tip goes hand in hand with tip #3. Personally, my favorite use for Airbnb is to make it feel like I'm on vacation, when really I am about 20 minutes from home. Last year, I used Airbnb to plan a trip with all of my friends to stay a weekend in Park City when we all really needed a break from school. We rented out a house that fit 16 people and had game nights, jacuzzi chats, dance parties, and "family" meals. It gave us the feeling that we were on a relaxing weekend away from all of the stress from school, but really we were finding fun right there in a place we all called home. I don't think a single one of us paid more than $70 for the whole weekend including housing and food, so that was a major plus!
Park City is one of those cities that everyone expects to be expensive, but in reality is very reasonably priced. Renting an Airbnb can save you a lot of money when compared to the prices of most of the resorts and hotels, and a lot of the time, you can get a lot of the same amenities that you would in one of these resorts, minus the spa aspect. A lot of Airbnb's in the area have jacuzzis and some may even have pools as well. During the day, you can take hikes along the mountain trails, or you can go skiing at one of the many resorts in the area. If it's not ski season, you can go zip-lining or rock climbing through the mountains, or shoot the tube at a nearby reservoir. There is also some great shopping along Main Street as well as in the Tanger Outlets! Park City is an easy weekend trip if you are from anywhere in Utah, Wyoming, or even Idaho!
If you are taking a trip with other people, set a budget for how much each of you are willing to spend for the entire trip! Plan out money for lodging, gas, food, and fun activities. Do your research! I cannot stress this enough! think of all of the activities you would like to do on your trip. Do you want to go out to the bars? Make a budget for that. Do you want to go to museums? Make a budget for that. Do you want to eat out for every meal? Make a budget for that. You get the point. Get your people and throw together a google spreadsheet. It will go a long way. The more specific you budget categories are, the easier it will be to make your money last! Be smart and do the extra planning. Your bank account will thank you.
Or have them visit you! Or even visit your family! Visit somewhere that you know housing will be FREE and food will (most likely) be cheap! Have your friends show you around the new place they call home and go to their favorite spots with them! Meet new people! Catch up with some of the people you love the most! If you have a friend come visit you, treat your college town like you have never been there before. Do all of the fun touristy things. Go to all of the fun photo spots. Take your friend to your favorite spots and focus on a fun few nights of sleepovers and exploring! If you're a homebody and would rather visit your family, do that! Honestly, spending time with the people you love most will not only save you money, but it is what will make your heart happiest. Sometimes all we need over spring break is a reset. We have dealt with midterms, we are beginning to stress about finals, but those things can't get in our way if we are doing what makes us happiest with the people we care about most!
Now, you can take these suggestions in any way you want. You can take them with a grain of salt, or you can start applying them to the way you plan out your school breaks! If you want to save money and stay nearby, do it! But if you want to splurge and take that trip to Cabo with your sorority sisters, do that! This is YOUR break. This is your time to reset and you need to do what will make you happiest! No matter what your plans are, have fun this spring break. Be safe and be smart! xo, The Undergrad
0 Comments
|
AUTHORCamille Baron is a 20 year old attending the University of Utah and is in her third year as a Strategic Communications major. She strives to educate college women like herself to achieve their full potential in all aspects of life. ARCHIVES
July 2020
CATEGORIESAll Business And Professional College Culture Education Health And Wellness Self Care Travel |