Explore Free Activities

As inflation continues to rise, saving money wherever you can becomes more than just a want, it becomes necessary. Today’s post explores some options for free activities or programs for entertainment – especially important if you have kids!

1. Libraries

Libraries are so great, and not just for books! Libraries sometimes have movies, TV shows, games, and so much more! I’ve even seen them have seeds for summer gardening. Libraries are a wonderful source for free entertainment and expanding knowledge!

In Dr. Ben Carson’s book, Gifted Hands, he speaks about how his mother made him start reading books every week. His grades and confidence skyrocketed! There is so much to learn and explore through the library.

Libraries sometimes also have free events. In our town, they have story time at the park during the summer, as well as art events, and competitions – all of which are free! What a wonderful thing for communities!

I’ll have another post soon that explores even more options about libraries specifically – stay tuned!

2. Town Events

If you live in a small town, it may be worth looking into events that they put on. These may include movies in the park, parades, or scarecrow competitions.

In my small town, we do all of these things. We also host car shows and airstream (camper) shows. All of which are free! It’s fun to walk around town and look at the different scarecrows around Halloween or the different old/classic cars during the summer. You can definitely meet some really nice people at the same time!

3. Parks

Parks are a wonderful opportunity to get outside and be active, especially if you have kids! They can play on the playground or explore nature using trails. Some parks even allow swimming (just be careful!). Most parks are free or covered with a state park pass. We always renew our state park pass on our license plates to allow us to visit parks at no additional cost.

If you’re a big traveller, you can also explore options for national park passes (this is in the United States – I’m unsure of other countries). My husband and I visited a few different national parks during our honeymoon. Instead of paying for each one separately, we purchased a national park pass to save money. Just ensure you’re using it enough that year to justify the cost (if you only visit one park that year, it would save you more just paying to enter that park). If you have a disability, are a veteran, or a senior citizen, please look into discounts (those with a disability can get a FREE lifetime pass). You can find more on their website. We absolutely LOVE exploring national parks and are looking forward to visiting more!