Cheap Summer Day Camp Ideas
April 15, 2009 by Katelyn
Filed under Simply Frugal Mama
Like many budget conscious parents, we don’t have any interest in blowing thousands on summer camp. I’m home writing and could just as easily write in the park, at a playground, etc. However, the kids don’t feel the same way. They are all excited at the thought of going to day camps for at least a week during the summer.
Photo: SXC/Damian Curcio
I remember feeling the same way when I was nine or ten and I did go to a few camps and had a blast. I knew they had to be cheap because I was one of five kids and we didn’t have a lot of money growing up, but I couldn’t remember details. So, I picked up the phone and called my mom. Luckily, she remembered all the details.
YMCA Day Camps
The YMCA offers a variety of camps. The local Y, which is a mini branch, provides a week day camp for $90 a week for 5-12 year olds. They go swimming, visit the Maryland Zoo at Baltimore and do crafts, sports and other activities. The quality of the activities sounds really nice and it is around $150 cheaper than other local day camps. The main Y also offers camps for preschoolers and older kids.
Bible Camp
$90 seems too high? How about free? Several local churches offer free Bible day camps for kids during the summer. They usually last about a week and are geared toward school age children. I recall our Bible camps lasting about an hour to two hours, but they were very low key affairs in a neighbor’s yard because the church offering them didn’t have a big space for recreational activities. (Mega churches were still a wave of the future when I attended Bible camp!) Anyway, I’d check with the local church, synagogue, etc. to see if there is anything in the works.
Library Reading Program
Another option is to check out the public library’s reading program and other local free activities to create a Mom’s day camp. We kind of did this last year – just registered for programs in our age groups and packed a picnic lunch for the park or the playground to eat after the program. Tons of fun and absolutely free.
Do you have any good low cost camp options?
