Backseat breakfast – a road trip tradition.

For most of us, the Holiday season is already far away in the rearview mirror. The decorations are packed away and the baking to vegetable ratio in your fridge has righted itself. And while it’s nice to relax after all of the socializing and rushing around in December, there’s a bit of a January letdown. How do you deal with the post-holiday blahs?

Like many Canadians you can book a January vacation to warmer weather. I’m sure you’ve noticed the empty desks and offices, and a lot more cheery/gloating “I’m out of the office for eight days at an all inclusive resort (while you’re stuck here at work) “ emails floating around your workplace lately. But you don’t need to jump on a plane to beat the blahs – why not plan a little day trip in your own backyard?

Hitting the road – where’s the snow?

Ahh there it is – what a difference a day makes.

That’s what my wife and I did last weekend. Our friend had opened a new restaurant in Saskatoon the week earlier, so we thought it was the perfect excuse to get out of town with the boys for a quick overnighter. We surprised the kids on Saturday, not telling them until we were on the road.

Saskatoon’s Griffin Takeaway – yum.

It was a great day of awesome food (seriously, if you’re ever in Saskatoon, check out The Griffin Takeaway– the best Potato Cheddar Soup I’ve ever had and a cake called Peanut Butter Caramel Schmoo that I would consider selling my soul for), a trip to the zoo (which is free in the winter, but still had a lot of animals out) and a night of waterslides.

The animals were out in full force.

But overall, it was just getting away for the day with my wife and the boys that was special and beat the blahs – without having to go to an airport.

Refuelling in Davidson.

Take a look close to home – there are so many cool tings to do in small towns – or make it a real staycation and book a hotel for a night in your own town. Pick a place with a pool for a taste of summer (I guess you can beat the blahs poolside after all) and try a restaurant you’ve never tried before. All you need to beat the winter blues is a change of pace and this is an easy and relatively affordable way to do it.

God bless restaurants with crayons. 

TIP: A lot of travel sites have a “name your price” feature, where you can pick your city, dates and star rating for a hotel, then enter in your price and billing info. If a hotel accepts your offer you are automatically booked. It’s a great way to save a lot of money, as long as you’re comfortable with not knowing the exact hotel until it is booked. I have used this feature and saved up to $80 a night on several occasions, with only one room we weren’t happy with. A bit of a crap shoot, if you’re up for a bit more adventure!