Staycation – Have Fun and Boost Your Local Economy

This past week my husband and I celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary. We had hoped to “go someplace special” and we did … we did the tourist thing from home. Nearly every day had a new destination within driving distance and every evening we were back in our comfortable bed. Our staycation was inexpensive, educational, quite relaxing and a lot of fun.    

We’re blessed to live in an area rich in historical significance, although as an adult it’s easy to forget all those lessons learned in grade school about our past. Wisconsin’s Fox River Valley is known for its paper production, including Kleenex, disposable diapers, feminine products, and fine writing paper, Oshkosh Truck (supplier of military and industrial vehicles), Pierce Fire Trucks, and the Neenah Foundry (for its manhole covers found ’round the globe). What I didn’t know before this week was that the Hearthstone, a beautiful Queen Ann Victorian mansion that graces the corner of Prospect Avenue and Memorial Drive in Appleton, was the first private home in the world to ever be lighted by electricity. We had always known it as the first home in Appleton to get electricity, but it’s a much, much bigger story – and quite fascinating.

Other day trips included the 1,000 Islands Environmental Center in Kaukauna, where we hiked along the Fox River and observed Blue Herons, an abundance of ducks and geese and other birds, as well as Carp with their huge mouths taking up their entire face as they fed along the algae. We spent a relaxing afternoon at High Cliff State Park, taking lots of photos and marveling at the number and variety of spiders along the trail. I’d have preferred marveling at birds or just about any other form of wildlife, but my husband is into photographing anything that moves and he was fascinated. We spent another afternoon just driving around … drove the short distance to Green Bay then watched as one of the big coal freighters maneuvered itself so that it could be loaded … then proceeded southeast toward Manitowoc and drove along Lake Michigan.

On the day of our anniversary, we visited the site of our wedding, the Little Chapel in the Woods in Little Hope, Wisconsin. We were married on its front steps in a small outdoor ceremony, with only our extended families in attendance. Now we had the place to ourselves, so after taking a few photos in that picturesque setting, we sat down in the chapel and thanked God for 30 wonderful years and asked his blessing on the next 70 or so years we hope to have together. (Yeah, we plan on hanging around until we’re really old geezers!)

Our only staycation expenses were gas, dining out, and a small amount for admission to museums and state parks, yet I feel we did our part to strengthen our local economy. We ate at local restaurants, including Cannova’s and Cranky Pat’s in Neenah, Pullmans Restaurant and Atlas Coffee Mill in Appleton , and Stuc’s in Town of Menasha. Each of these are excellent, by the way. Cannova’s was romantic with delicious food, a nice atmosphere and live music (classical guitar, saxophone, piano and soft vocals). Cranky Pat’s is more of your classic pizza joint, very good pizza and Fat Tire Ale (among other beer choices) on tap. At Pullmans and Atlas Coffee House, we had our choice of dining in or outside on their patio … great food, nice atmosphere at both places. Stuc’s is our most local pizza joint. Their Baron simply can’t be beat … our pizza of choice for picking up hot and enjoying at home in front of the TV. Yes, every vacation needs at least one TV night … right?

I’ll close this staycation commentary out with a small business marketing thought. Can your business capitalize on local tourism in some fashion? How can you encourage the citizens of your home town to view your offerings in a new light? Or looking at it from the other angle, what can you do to strengthen your local economy? We didn’t have the budget for an anniversary trip to Hawaii, but we sure weren’t disappointed with our low-budget staycation. In addition to spending our dollars locally, I’m telling you about it. Notice the links to each destination mentioned. That’s not done on a whim. I’m hoping you’ll go check them out … then go and do likewise with the businesses in your own community!