Exotic Staycation Ideas for Teens

Backyard Staycation Oasis

• If your teen loves to spend time in the sun lounging by the pool, glam up the yard and turn your family pool into a backyard oasis. Start with new decorations for the area. Keep your teen's favorite vacation spot in mind and purchase some decorations with the same theme or just spruce the area up by replacing your old furniture. New chairs by the pool and outdoor string lights can make a boring backyard look more hip and fun. After you spruce up the yard, host a weekend pool party for your teen and his friends. Set up a bar area and serve non-alcoholic tropical drinks for an extra touch. If your teens would rather just spend time with the family, you can get out the grill, try some new recipes or just have a traditional cookout by the pool.

A Taste of International Food

• If your teen is yearning to travel abroad and you don't have the time or money for it, you can give her a taste of the exotic with international food instead. Take your teen to a variety of foreign restaurants in your city to enjoy the food and atmosphere or you can always cook the food at home. Choose a week to designate as exotic food week and then choose recipes as a family that you would like to try out. Once you have all the supplies, you can make the meals together and even try decorating the kitchen with exotic adornments to enhance the theme. If you're unsure how to prepare your favorite foreign foods at home you can look for cooking classes in your area for you and your teen. Now the two of you get to enjoy a taste of international cuisine and learn how to prepare it at home in the future.

Special Sleepover

• Your teens can have a traditional sleepover any time, but finding something special to do makes it feel more like a vacation. If your teen enjoys the great outdoors, pitch a tent and let him host a backyard camp-out with friends. It's less expensive than a campsite and your teen can still sneak inside for late-night snacks. If he'd rather stay inside, book a night at a local hotel where rates might be lower during the week. Book two rooms and let your teens enjoy a night with his friends while you supervise from an adjoining room. This gives him the chance to be out of the house and gives him access to a pool, too. If your teen wants to have a sleepover at home, decorate the recreation room with exotic embellishments, such as LED tiki lights and fake palm trees. Rent some of his favorite beach or tropical-themed movies, prepare exotic fruit trays filled with papaya, mango, passion fruit and prickly pears, and serve sparkling fruit juices or smoothies in hurricane glasses.

Spa Day

• If your teen's idea of an exotic vacation involves a little pampering, organize a spa day to enhance her exotic staycation. Many upscale resorts offer spa services, so visiting a local spa will let your teen enjoy this vacation perk without going on vacation. Call ahead and book facials and a massage, a manicure and pedicure or a makeover -- depending on your budget and what your teen would enjoy -- and spend a mom-and-teen day at the spa together. If you would rather do a spa day at home, you can buy all the supplies and have a weekend spa day together or let your teen have a spa day with her friends. Manicures and pedicures, as well as facials, are easy to do at home with some lotions, nail polish and exfoliating scrubs.