"Staycation" is the newest holiday fad. One of my daughters has new puppies still being trained so she is having stay at home holidays. Here are some ideas for vacationing at home that you will not need cash advances to fund.

When spending your vacation at home, try looking at your hometown with the eyes of a visitor.
Go to places a tourist would visit – or arrange a picnic in your own garden or the nearest park.

Please share your tips on things to do when vacationing at home : )

1/Find events for free at craft stores, go to movies of off peak rates or go to the park!

2/Pack a picnic even if you are going down to your local park and always have a camera with you.... it is amazing. If you are near the seaside, just sitting watching the seagulls  and the kids played in the sea.

3/ Living in a capital city, most tourist towns are a few hours drive away If you leave early spend a few hours you could be home the same day Makes for great mini holidays. Make it a round trip for varied scenery.

4/ You do not always need money to have family fun, dog walking, sight seeing in your own town to places that you have not been to in months.

5/Sign up for the tourism newsletter from my state and each week they send out coupons for various attractions around the state.

6/See your hometown through the eyes of visiting friends - give yourself a whole new perspective and you see things you may not have noticed before.

7/Go to all the historical and fun attractions from the nearby towns and your own.

8/ 'Be a tourist in your own town' it makes you appreciate the beauty in your home and take more care in the environment.

9/Experiment with ethnic restaurants and botanical displays. Visit the Chinese & Japanese gardens.  Visit the ethnic shops. Learn a little about the different cultures in your town. 

10/The best things in life are free!
Camping out in the lounge room with the kids, old fashioned jokes, story time & sleeping bags.
Don't forget the hot chocolates with marshmallows!

11/Gather travel brochures & make scrapbooks of all your favorite places you would like to visit.

12/Make a batch of cupcakes, mix up the icing & put in the middle of the kitchen table with all sorts of lollies for decorating them. Let the kids have a ball! Try weekly family blackout nights too. You can only eat what you have in the cupboard or the fridge without cooking. You may only use candles (be careful!) or torches. You may only talk, sing, read or play non-electronic games. It's great for the environment, family relationships & your pocket!! You will be surprised how much more fun you can have & the kids love that you are involved! You may even save enough for a nice little holiday somewhere! :)

13/ Shopping malls, museums n art gallery have events for the kids all through out the school holidays.

14/A day (or half day) at a spa is a nice way to relax and rejuvenate yourself. Maybe take a yoga class as well.

15/Stroll the streets and window shop- that logs up the walking exercise steps too.

16/Do a car boot sale or market stall and even let the kids sell things they no longer want and buy stuff with the money that they do want.

17/ Redecorating the living room ` or any room.

18/ Visiting the cathedrals, walk the dog go cycling.

20/Catch up with family and friends you don't see often. Watch old home movies with those you love.

Books » Travel » Country Guides » Australia & NZ
Frommer's Australia
By Marc Llewellyn

Frommer's Australia is packed with all the facts, tips, and descriptions you need to have perfect vacation: * Completely updated every year, Frommer's Australia features gorgeous full-color photos of the Outback vistas, curious wildlife, and white-sand beaches that await you.

* Our authors have lived in and written about Australia for years, so they're able to provide valuable insights and advice. They'll steer you away from the touristy and the inauthentic and show you the real heart of the land Down Under. Let them take you to exciting cities, Aboriginal homesteads, Barossa Valley vineyards, and natural wonders, from the Wet Tropics Rainforest to Uluru to the Great Barrier Reef. You'll travel Australia like a pro using their candid advice and in-depth knowledge of the culture.

* Also included are accurate regional and town maps, up-to-date advice on finding the best package deals, a free color fold-out map, and an online directory that makes trip-planning a snap!

Table of Contents
List of Maps.
1 THE BEST OF AUSTRALIA. 2 AUSTRALIA IN DEPTH. 3 PLANNING YOUR TRIP TO AUSTRALIA. 4 SUGGESTED ITINERARIES. 5 SYDNEY. 6 NEW SOUTH WALES. 7 BRISBANE. 8 QUEENSLAND & THE GREAT BARRIER REEF. 9 THE RED CENTRE. 10 THE TOP END. 11 PERTH & WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 12 ADELAIDE & SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 13 MELBOURNE. 14 VICTORIA. 15 CANBERRA. 16 TASMANIA. 17 FAST FACTS. Index.

About the Author
Lee Mylne
(chapters 1, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 10, 13, 14, 16, and 17) is Melbourne-based but writes for a range of consumer and travel trade publications around Australia.

Born and raised in New Zealand, she has worked in newspapers, magazines, and radio and traveled widely before she started to make a living out of it. She has lived in Australia since 1986 and is a life member and past president of the Australian Society of Travel Writers.

Her other books include Frommer's Portable Australia's Great Barrier Reef and Australia For Dummies. Sydney resident Marc Llewellyn (chapters 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6) is one of Australia's premier travel writers and the winner of several writing awards. He is the president of the Australian Society of Travel Writers. He's written two travelogues, Riders to the Midnight Sun, which tells of his journey from the Ukrainian Black Sea to the Russian Arctic on a cheap bicycle, and Finding Nino, which recounts his year working as a peasant farmer and shrimp fisherman on an island off Sicily. He is also the co-author of Australia For Dummies.

Ron Crittall (chapters 1, 4, and 13) was on a long slow loop around the world when he arrived in Perth for a possible two-year stay. Thirty-five years on, he knows there's no place better to live. A travel writer for 15 years, he loves traveling round, and writing about, the vast expanse of Western Australia. He is the author of Walking Perth. Author of On the Road: 40 Great Driving Holidays in Australia and The Australian Adventure Atlas, Lee Atkinson (chapters 1, 12, and 15) has been writing about her adventures on and off the road since 1991.

Lee's latest book to hit the streets is Caravanning Australia, and her work appears in a wide range of newspapers and magazines across the country. When not traveling on assignment, Lee divides her time between Sydney and the New South Wales mid-north coast.

Nomadic Travel Planning: A list of resources for long-term travel | The Great Family Escape www.greatfamilyescape.com

An ever-growing list of resources for individuals and families interested in nomadic, long-term travel.
How to save, plan and succeed in traveling the world forever.

I have a shed at home where I store all those things I have purchased to make travel easier and more enjoyable.  Many travel with me for one trip and are rarely or never used.
Others go an alternate trips as I make the decision if I will be mostly free bush self sufficient camping or staying in caravan parks. 

I have also headed out of some trips overloaded in supplies and unloaded part way by selling perfectly good and near new items at below cost.  Such is the trial and error of learning by testing things out for yourself.   It has taken me four tours to make the choice to modify my caravan to the extent I have and remove a bench seat and install a side by side chest fridge and freezer in the space that had been a large bench seat and add to the already available caravan fridge freezer space.  This has been one of my favorite additions to our travels.

Anyhow I will be taking a good look at the above interesting website and see what, after 65 years of travel I can learn :-).  There is always heaps more to learn when it comes to travel.  Right now we are camped beside the river between St George and Surat in Queensland and loving it here.