Staycation: 10 Rules for Vacationing from Home

A staycation is a vacation in which you return home every night to sleep, thus saving you lodging and other expenses that you can put to other uses. However, it's useful for everyone to agree to a few ground rules in order to keep your staycation on track. Here are ten staycation rules for you to pick and choose from.

Let the Maid Do It

Coming home to clean the house goes against the spirit of a staycation. Pick up after yourselves, but leave the rest for housekeeping to take care of. Just remember that will be you at the end of your break.

No Cooking

If people in your family or party really like to cook, you might skip this one. Otherwise, use your time at home for zero prep meals or to pack picnics and snacks for your day trips; you can spend some of the money that you save on a meal or two at a nice restaurant.

Nobody's Home

The point of vacation is to get away from it all, but try telling that to your friends and neighbors when they see your car in the driveway. Rather than shutting off all the lights and closing the blinds, just explain to the usual suspects that you're going to be unavailable for a few days and will catch up with them when you get back. If you have kids, this goes for their friends too.

Turn Off the TV (and Computer)

This might be a hard sell for some people, but a vacation isn't just a break from work; it's a break from the whole routine. Making a rule of little to no TV or Internet for the duration of break might really make the staycation feel like a break from the norm for the couch potatoes in your group.

In Communicado

Would you be returning many voicemails and emails from your vacation if it was on the road? If not, then don't do it on your staycation either. If everybody needs you so badly, they'll still be there at the end of your break.

No Mail

Although most mail is pretty innocuous, there's always the occasional unexpected bill or other downer that arrives in the mailbox. Consider just letting the mail pile up like you would if you were out of town to avoid any unpleasant surprises.

Draw the line at Work

Because you're technically still in town in the eyes of your employer, your boss might think that you're still available for non-emergency phone calls or even to come into the office "for a few minutes." Be sure to make it clear that this is your vacation and that you are no more available than you would be if you were sunning yourself on some remote island beach. Once your coworkers get it, they'll understand.

Add a Little Luxury

Just because you're not at a hotel doesn't mean that you can't treat yourselves to some luxury at home. Adults might enjoy some fine wine and beer or quality bath products, while a kid's idea of luxury might be closer to unexpected ice cream or the opportunity to pick a destination for one of your day trips.

Get Back on the Road

Anyone who has watched a vaguely scheduled Saturday slip away knows how time flies when you're lounging around the house. Make a commitment to head out of the house by a certain hour on every morning of your staycation.

Shake it Up

Be sure to find something special that separates your staycation from a string of day trips. One idea is to rent a nice car for an outing or two, while a cheaper way to give your staycation a narrative is to take a video camera along and edit it all into a little home movie at the end of your break.