Four Cheap Summer Family Activites

I currently don’t have a family and am in no place to start one in the immediate future, however, I wanted to share four great ways to spend quality time with your family that don’t involve dishing out tons of money. Amusement parks and water themed parks can be very pricey, especially for families that have more than 3 children.

I was recently in Disneyland while visiting a friend in LA, and discovered that an Adult ticket was close to $100. Adding on 3 kids plus a wife would make an entire day adventure  cost nearly $425! This isn’t even factoring in the costs of the flights, hotel accommodations and food purchases. Regardless, going to Disney is an experience but it also happens to be loud and not a great place to spend quality time with your children. If you are looking for both quality and cost savings activities, here are four ways to accomplish both goals.

Going on A Hike

There are tons of state parks and national parks that you can visit at any point with your family and spend some quality time in nature. To help you get started, I recommend visiting the following website to look up good trails and discover whats nearby you. Hiking up mountains in the summer is fun because the weather is much cooler as you get elevated off the ground, and children get excited to see animals in nature. Costs for this sort of trip include lunches, admission to the park, gas, and some basic hiking supplies (water bottles, hiking shoes, etc.) and are very fun!

Go to an Air Show

I have been to three Air Shows in my life and they were awesome. First, you get to see some of the most incredible advancements in science and technology and get to see some of the best pilots in the world showing off their skills. The nice part of an air show is everyone is admitted for a very minimal cost, they usually have tons of booths with giveaways and raffles for kids, and there are professionals explaining the history and science behind the aircraft. Check if one is near you soon here.

Go to a County/Renaissance Fair

Finding these is tougher but using the internet should turn one up in no time. Essentially, these fairs were created for families. Admission is usually free and you pay per activity for your children. Most of the activities are fun games that entertain children, while others are more educational and may inspire kids to want to learn more about farming and raising animals. When I was a kid, I happened to love watching the pie-eating contests and remember how all the audience got involved in cheering people on. It’s a very fun family activity.

Go Fishing

This is also a bit trickier to find the right places and times to go, but again the internet should provide better insight than me. Fishing is a great summer pastime.  It brings family closer because it involves teamwork and is fun. Waking up for fishing trips over the ocean can be difficult for families with smaller children, however, if families have older kids, this sort of activity provides a ton of enjoyment for kids of all ages. Also, being on the water on a warm summer day is both relaxing and refreshing. Just remember the sun screen!