Explore Your City: How to Have Fun for Cheap

Posted August 1, 2016 by shooting in Uncategorized / 13 Comments

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One thing you should know about me is that I love doing different things around where I live. I’ve shared some of these stories on my blog before. Yes, I live near a major city so we probably do have more things going on than your average city, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t explore where you live more often. See what restaurants are out there, check out local festivals or events, and generally enjoy where you live….without hopefully spending too much money!

I use a variety of websites to see what events are happening in my area and they often allow me to save money in the process. Yes, I love a good event that’s free – so check out your parks and see if they have movie nights or other family gatherings. I know my city has a Circus Day every year and while I have yet to attend, I really want to bring my niece and nephew sometime. There is a local circus group that does fun tricks, showing off on the trapeze, and of course, lots of other fun, kid-friendly activities. Best part of all? It’s at a local park and it’s all free!

Now, I’m going to share some of the websites that I look at to find events in my local area. Some are specific to where I live, but not all of them – so be sure to search your city or the nearest big city if you need! I was inspired to write this post because of Personal Capital and they have great, FREE software to help you plan a budget for fun family adventures, or even save for retirement, etc.

First up, we have Groupon and you can look up items based on your city, and then go to Things To Do if you’re looking for a fun event or activity!

Groupon has a variety of things you can do – like painting events, horseback riding, tickets to comedy shows, and even cheaper tickets to concerts!

Next up, we have Living Social, which you can also use to search your nearest city! Sometimes you’ll see deals on here that are similar to Groupon, but it’s still a good idea to search both if they have things for your city/area.

Some of what I found searching Living Social right now is Admission for 2 to The Beach Waterpark for $29 (normally $64), $11 tickets to the Ohio Renaissance Festival, and more!

Finally, I have a website that’s just for the Cincinnati area, called Cincy Savers. Now, your city might have something similar, so do a little google search and make sure you aren’t missing out on some great local deals!

This is a great place to look for all types of fun deals on restaurants, spa services, and much more (like cheaper tickets to King’s Island Amusement Park)!

What about you? Do you check for online deals in order to have fun? What deals/coupons have you used in the past?

-Lauren

13 responses to “Explore Your City: How to Have Fun for Cheap

  1. I actually go to the local Reddit community to see what's going on. We have RVA Reddit, and people will often post great events that I might otherwise completely miss out on. I use it too, to advertise different events at the bookstore.

  2. I really should explore my city more but it's harder to get around if you don't have a car. I also feel like there's probably not that much to do here but that could be because I don't look online. It's a good suggestion though and since I live close to Toronto, I'm sure there's stuff to do there.

  3. How great to have so much available to you. San Francisco keeps me busy, too. And I can drive in when something's going on that strikes my fancy. Cities are amazing. I just couldn't live in one. I'm a country girl most of the time.

  4. I am always looking for deals online or just deals in general; especially since we are a family of six you know? Even so, I am familiar with Groupon and have used it on rare occasions, but I am not familiar with living social! I'll have to look into this one 🙂 Great post Lauren!

  5. Oh, I use Groupon, too but mostly for stuff that are cheap. I haven't tried the stuff that are from my city, though. I really should do that. This is such an informative post!

  6. I live outside Detroit and I REALLY need to get out and about in this city. There is sooo much history and just plain STUFF to do here. I'm going to try Groupon for discounts to some attractions here before the summer is over! Awesome idea.

    Did I know you lived in Cinci? My brother lives on Liberty Hill downtown. I love that city!!! I'm sure I've told you that before… Oh the donuts and bars down in OTR now!!! 🙂

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