Every school holidays I vow that I will make these holidays one my kids will remember. I vow to make these holidays full of action-packed fun that they’ll always think back on.
One with events they can look forward to and plan for. Those big-ticket days they can dream about and tell their friends about when they go back to school.
A concert, a play, something they’ve been hoping to see.
I vow to take them places they’ve never been, to experience things they’ve never done.
“Oh, the places we’ll go,” I think to myself with plans of outings to museums and holiday camps. I dream of glorious days of summer sports and zoo trips or days at the movies, popcorn in hand, eyes glued to the big screen.
I look up who and what’s on where and go through my calendar, hoping we can fit it all in.
And then I get out the calculator.
Have you seen the cost of those places?
I’ve got three kids and there isn’t much on that wish list that comes out under a $100 a day. Some of them wrack up to over $200 and when you add in food and transport and the ‘can-I-haves’, it’s a budgeting nightmare.
When you've got three kids you've got to think smart when it comes to activites. Image: supplied.
What you need is something that the whole family can do together; somewhere you can save on those transport costs. Something where you can try to cut out the added extras like food and drinks, which often blow the budget.
Somewhere that still says school holiday excitement in bright big flashing lights and fireworks.
Somewhere like the Big Bash League. You don’t have to be a cricket tragic for this to appeal as an ideal school holiday activity. The shorter faster format – only three hours – and fireworks means it is a fast-paced fun filled day or night for all.
It’s easy to get to and from the venue, with public transport running so you can get there affordably.
And when it comes to appealing to all ages Big Bash League works perfectly. Last year I took my four-year-old daughter and my sons, aged six and eight.
I was a little worried at first that my daughter may not last the distance. She’s young and hadn’t had much exposure to cricket. But from the minute we walked along with the heaving, excited crowd to the SCG, past the waving flags and brightly coloured paraphernalia she was hooked.
At each ‘six’ she squealed with delight at the giant flares, she danced with the sideline entertainment and watched fascinated as the fireworks lit up the sky. The cricketers looked close enough to touch and the mascots waved at her. She beat her ‘drum’ she was given and pleaded with me to let her stay right until the very end.
Which I did.
"From the minute we walked along with the heaving, excited crowd to the SCG, past the waving flags and brightly coloured paraphernalia she was hooked." Image: supplied.
One of the most family friendly aspects of the Big Bash League is the ability to bring your own food and beverages into the grounds. We packed water, juice, sandwiches, fruit and muffins, as well as some treats for the kids (just leave the glass at home!)
The Big Bash league has 35 matches to choose from these school holidays over 40 days so you can be sure to find a time to fit in with your busy holiday schedule. With Christmas looming and all the school holiday expenses, the Big Bash League is an easy, affordable, exciting event for each member of the family. It’s an event to enjoy together and to make memories that make summer holidays so special.
So, I’m ready, tickets booked – the excitement is building all for under $50.
Where else can you get that value for money?
How do you budget over the summer holidays?
Top Comments
We're on a budget too. We go to outdoor cinemas - there is one called Starry Nights that does a lot of free or gold coin entry events over summer on the Sunshine Coast. At one they even had free vegan icecream and popcorn! We revisit places we used to go to when my daughter was little - the beach, the park, the playground. We make photobooks with her toys or in our local area. We go to free shows and activities at shopping centres. This holidays we went to a jungle-themed one at Noosa Civic, an amazing science show at Noosa Fair and a Toy Story one at Sunshine Plaza, which also had people from Wildlife HQ zoo doing snake holds for $1. The Ginger Factory Flower and Food festival had lots of stuff for free or cheap (face painting was $6, cuddles with native animals like gliders, snakes, and bettongs was $2, kids' icecream was $4.) We go bushwalking and discover wildlife and wildflowers.
You don't need to spend a lot of money to have holidays that are fun and memorable. Some of our most fun days are spent just cooking together, reading together, splashing in the paddling pool together - being together.