tourist taking pictures

13 Creative & Budget-Friendly Ways To Be A Tourist In Your Own City

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In this post you will find 13 creative and budget-friendly staycation activities to be a tourist in your own city.

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A staycation doesn’t always mean you have to sit in your home or backyard doing nothing. You can definitely go out in your own city to do the things you usually would on a destination vacation.

Besides, we don’t even notice the beauty our own city has to offer sometimes. All we have to do is look at it with new eyes. Get creative and you might just fall in love with your city once again.

In addition, you’ll be supporting local businesses, which is obviously good for your city. And you will benefit from that as well! Staycation activities benefit everybody.

I said it once and I’ll say it again: vacations shouldn’t be limited to only a few weeks a year!

Read more: How To Have a Backyard Staycation

Here are some budget-friendly, touristy activities that will make you rediscover your own city!

Staycation activities

1. Take a (free) guided walking tour

This will always be my favorite (budget) travel activity. In most cities they have (free) guided walking tours. The guides are locals and they will tell you things you probably didn’t know yet about your city.

Usually they offer at least a basic walking tour, covering the basics, but I’ve taken several tours, specifically about the history, graffiti, food, etc. Whatever peaks your interest!

2. Ask friends/family for recommendation

Text your friends and family who also live in your city for their favorite places. Try them out for yourself. There is no one you should be able to trust more than the locals, especially if they are your friends or family.

If you are open for some other idea’s, ask a stranger. Ask their favorite place to eat, drink, relax, etc. Go there and come up with a story about how they discovered this place and why they love it now.

3. Do a city game

A very fun way to explore your city together with some friends is by doing a city game. There are several city games for different durations, thrill, etc. Just google ‘city games’ along with your city name.

Some examples are:

  • City escape game, where you will crack a code together with the help of puzzles, just like an escape room.
  • Real life board game, where you play a game such as Battleship, Monopoly or Risk throughout your city, against each other.
  • Murder and mystery game, where you will solve a murder or mystery in a certain period of time or even whilst being followed.

4. Try a new restaurant

staycation activity: restaurant food

It’s very likely you haven’t tried all the different restaurants in your city. Maybe you haven’t even tried all the different cuisines. A staycation is the perfect opportunity to try something new. Maybe you’ll discover your new favorite restaurant!

If you want to try more than one restaurant, go around and get an appetizer at each place. It’s like traveling the world in your own city!

5. Visit that museum you never got around to see

Be honest, how many times have you walked past that one museum on your way to work and thought to yourself: “one day I will go there” and then you never did?

I know people from London who never rode the London Eye. Or people from Barcelona who never went inside the Sagrada Familia.

To any tourist that sounds insane. But how many touristic places in your own city have you not seen or visited yet?

6. Take your camera on a walk

staycation activity: photo sightseeing

There is so much to see in any place, you just have to look. A camera is an amazing tool to get your eyes to look around.

If you find it difficult, focus on a theme to photograph, like a certain color, only flowers, or graffiti.

You will guaranteed see some things you have never seen before!

7. Follow a travel blogger’s itinerary

Travel bloggers usually talk about the most touristic things to do and see in a city. Sometimes they write about some hidden gems. They tend to have an eye for such things.

You’ll get to see your city through the eyes of someone who had limited time to discover your city.

Why not be a cheesy tourist and go do all they recommended! You might discover some new places you never even knew existed.

Who knows, maybe someone in your city already did a staycation and listed their favorite staycation activities already!

8. Watch the sunset/sunrise

staycation activity: city sunset

Who doesn’t love a good sunset or sunrise? Usually we don’t have the time to get up really early and go watch the sun rise in peace. Bring some blankets and try to find the best spot to watch them. What a way to start or end your amazing vacation day!

Who knew the city could be so quiet before the early sunrays?

Go for breakfast after sunrise or for a drink after sunset as a bonus activity.A

9. Try a type of transport you normally don’t use

Break your transportation habits and try a new type of transport for a day! Zoom around on a Lime scooter, take a bus to the city centre, or discover the dark underground metro for a day.

If you’re feeling active, put on roller blades and follow the smoothest roads. You’ll never know where you end up!

10. Look for the highest point in your city

I personally love skylines. The world looks so different from above. And so will your city.

Try to find where your house is, your gym and your job. Try to find the way you walk/drive home every day.

Trust me, it’s harder than it sounds.

11. Find statues in the city and learn about them

staycation activity: statue searching

Most cities have a lot of statues. They all have a reason to be there. You’ll find out a whole bunch about your place when you actually take time to look at them and google their meanings.

Who made them? Why are they in this certain place? Why do they belong in your city? And what do they mean?

12. Take a bus to the final stop (and try to find your way back)

Go to the nearest bus station and hop on the first bus that arrives. Ride it all the way to it’s end station.

If you’re down for a hike, pack some drinks and snacks and walk your way back home… if you can find it.

13. Send a postcard of your city to a friend

Sending a postcard is something a lot of tourists do. You’re a tourist today, so why not send a card from your own city? Challenge your friend to discover their city as well. Maybe you’ll get a card back soon!

After you’re done being a tourist, go on TripAdvisor and write some recommendations about your city. You might inspire someone else to come see your city!

Similarly, with all your new found knowledge, you can tell your future travel buddies all about your place. I personally love learning about different places in the world by talking to people. Let others have that experience from you.

These staycation activities are guaranteed to make you see your familiar surroundings in a new light.

You can find that vacation feeling even in your own city.

Read more: How To Camp In Your Own Backyard (With Checklist)

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