
Used up all your vacation days? That’s all right! You can turn any weekend into a grand staycation.
Make a brief stay at a local lodging—a luxurious hotel, a quaint bed, and breakfast, or a campground. Visit that local attraction that you’ve never gotten around to visiting. Enjoy some R&R with the family or have quality “you” time. Order room service. Slip away from your weekend routine and experience your town like an out-of-towner would.
And don’t forget to pack the essentials:

The Right Bags
Ditch the hefty suitcases!
During a weekend staycation, your stay is short and local. You’re not embarking on a two-week adventure through the Caribbean (well, unless you live there!), and you most likely won’t be hopping aboard any plane. You only have to bring enough clothes and items to last you a day or two, and you should carry them in something that’s fast and easy for short-distance
travelling .
Duffle bags are the perfect carrying item for any local stay. You can easily place them in the back of your car or carry them on public transit, and they won’t take up so much space in your lodging.
Good
ol’fashioned backpacks are another helpful carrying item. They’re compact and lightweight—perfect for any outdoor excursions that you and your family might take.
Multi-function Fashion
You can’t bring your whole wardrobe on your staycation—you’re only carrying duffle bags, remember? Try and bring garments that you can use in multiple different environments and atmospheres.
Multi-function fashion will help you in two areas. First, it’ll help you save space in your bags. Second, it’ll reduce the amount of time you spend changing clothes so you can make the most of your whole weekend. You’ve got less than 48 hours of fun to be had, and you don’t want to waste any unnecessary time having to go back to your room and change. Whether you’re going on a hike, to the poolside, or to a cocktail bar, you’ll be ready for any adventure that comes your way.
A few of the multi-function fashion items you can bring (depending on where you’re staycation-ing) include:
Reversible swimsuit
Sarongs
A Good Book
A staycation is
the perfect time to get back into reading! What’s more relaxing than sitting on a beach, or in nature, or on a cozy reading nook and losing yourself in a wonderful story? Hit the bookstore and pick a book from your favorite author. Bring two or three books just in case you don’t like one of them!
Alternative forms of reading include ebooks and audio books. Both are digital mediums, so they can save you some space in your bags.

Makeup and Toiletries
You might decide to spend the weekend makeup-free. And if you’re staying in a hotel, it’s bound to include some basic toiletries. But you should bring makeup and toiletries just because you’ll never know when and if you’ll need them. Better to have them and not need them, then to need them and not have them.
A Bottle of Your Favorite Wine
Whether you’re spending the evening in a tent or hotel room, it’s always relaxing to share a bottle your vacation favorite wine with yourself or your loved one. Just make sure the kiddies are preoccupied or have a babysitter!
A Tourist Attitude
No matter where you live, there are always activities and neighborhoods that are easy to brush off as “touristy”.
On your weekend staycation, though, you’ve only got to brush off that attitude! Here’s your chance to treat your city like you’d treat any other city you’d visit abroad. Hit all the tourist traps. Buy yourself some cheesy local souvenirs. Go to any museum or bar or restaurant or neighborhood that you might not have visited in a while.
The experience of enjoying your local community will be a whole lot different when you’re staying in someplace other than your house or apartment. You’ll get to see it from an outsider’s perspective, and that will hopefully give you a whole new appreciation for the place where you pitch your tent!
What NOT to Bring
There is one thing you should try and avoid bringing with you on your staycation: electronics.
Try and avoid bringing electronics other than your cell phone (unless you’re going camping, and a Kindle or Nook would be fine, too). If you bring a laptop or tablet,you’ll be tempted to use them! And you can use those devices any time, any dayof the week. Here’s your chance to do things that you don’t normally get to do.
Cell phones are a pretty vital tool these days, and they’re perfect for taking pictures. Still, try and limit your time spent on your cell phone so you can focus instead on your local surroundings.
With these tips, you’ll be on your way to relaxing, stress-free on the staycation of a lifetime!