Living on a student budget doesn’t mean that summer needs to be boring. There’s more to do than just lay on a beach, go for a bike ride, or head out for a walk or hike without breaking the bank.
The mission I chose to accept for this story is going out for the day without spending more than $40. I came close but could’ve done it cheaper.
To prepare for this task I did what I always do when looking for ideas: checked Pinterest. I found a lot of “summer bucket lists,” which had some regular summer activities such as feeding ducks, camping, and making s’mores. Other activities aren’t feasible in Victoria right now, like going to a waterpark, hosting a bonfire, or competing in Tough Mudder. A couple of the activities were more of a summer-long quest: buy a cookbook and make every recipe, grow a summer plant, and become conversational in a new language. So, while certain activities were not attainable for this challenge, I found a list of activities that I could do.
And right from the start, my day did not go as planned.
Everyone who said they were going to join me ended up bailing at the last minute. That didn’t ruin my plans; I had ideas for groups and activities to do on my own, which gave me the freedom to change plans on a whim.
The first thing I did was checked out Filipino festival Mabuhay! at Centennial Square. I explored the various food vendors and the food looked delicious, but I wasn’t hungry enough for a full meal, and at $20 it was too expensive. I did find one vendor that had lechon, a pork dish, and turon. I was sold on turon when told it was a dessert; it cost me $3 and looks like a spring roll but inside is a banana (I recommend trying this if given the opportunity). I then sat and ate my turon while watching a group of dancers perform.
Previously, during my brainstorming, I asked for suggestions on Facebook, and someone suggested Quazar’s Arcade on Government Street. I had never been there, so I decided to check it out. Before buying tokens, I walked around to see if there were any games I wanted to play. I was hit with nostalgia: Q*Bert, Donkey Kong, Tetris, and, my absolute favourite, The House of the Dead 2. I could have easily dropped my entire $40 on The House of the Dead but restricted myself to $5. It didn’t take long to realize that, despite playing it for hours back when I worked for Cineplex Odeon in Calgary, I suck at playing it now.
Despite the visit to Quazar’s being short, I still had fun. (There was a birthday party in the private room and for a moment I thought that might be a good idea for my upcoming birthday; then I realized I like alcohol more than video games.)
My next mission was to find a coffee shop I had never been to. I thought this would be a challenge due to the many coffee shops I’ve visited around town; I was wrong. The problem was I didn’t actually want coffee when I came across Rise & Grind on Broad Street, so I decided to come back later.
One of the things I wanted to do was a photo scavenger hunt; I have a card-deck-style game for this that I bought years ago. I randomly pulled out a dozen cards but some weren’t realistic: I wasn’t going to find snow in the summer, I didn’t want to take a photo of poo, and wasn’t going to try for a picture of bees. I put those cards back in the deck and drew three more. I’m easily distracted, so this part of my adventure did not go as planned. If I had focused on taking photos and nothing else, I probably would’ve found more, but I could only remember two cards while walking around; I ended up with one photo.
My next stop was Bastion Square Market, which is a dangerous option for me. If money were no issue I could have spent a few hundred dollars. I found art, pottery, chainmail jewelry, candles, and clothing that I wanted to buy. So, I left there and made my way to the Inner Harbour.
The reason I went to the Inner Harbour was two-fold; I wanted to see the new HAVN floating sauna (obviously way out of our budget) and check out the price of the harbour taxi. $14 for one stop was not worth it so I didn’t bother; I was looking to head to Fisherman’s Wharf, but not for that price. I’ve been on the harbour tours, and I do recommend them, but not on this budget.
There’s something fun that I’ve always wanted to do in the Inner Harbour but have put off—get a caricature done. The artist had just started one of a mother and daughter and I didn’t want to wait around. A basic black-and-white caricature is $15, and I still had $32, but I had to save some money for the end.
Another suggestion I was given was geocaching. A few of my friends are really into this but I’m a newbie. I downloaded the app, made an account, went through the tutorial, and was completely lost. Despite my confusion, I opted to try a virtual geocache because I thought snapping a photo would be fun. The nearest one was the Legislature fountain; pretty easy, or so I thought. When I got to the fountain it was surrounded by yellow tape. I burst into laughter at my luck. On to the next virtual geocache: a plaque of a poem by a former City of Victoria poet laureate on the corner of Government and Broughton. Another fail; I looked everywhere and could not find it.
Fox Trot was playing around the corner for free, so I gave up on geocaching and went to listen to them. They’re mellow rock with a laid-back island sound; like Current Swell with a little more edge. I would go see them again.
At this point, I wanted coffee and headed back to Rise & Grind. I should’ve made note of their hours because they closed at 3 pm and it was 3:30 pm when I went back. I was getting tired and wanted to head to my final activity—beer tasting. And here’s where I made my mistake.
Breweries generally have flights of four beers that range from $5 to $12 but instead, I decided to go to Swift. The flights at Swift are a good deal; it’s six for $12.95. They offer samples from different local breweries, so I thought this was a good idea, as I had $32 left. However, while drinking beer on the beautiful patio I got hungry. Chips and guacamole are $14; still under the $40 with tax but not tip. My original plan was to go to either Vancouver Island Brewing ($7.50 for a flight of four beers) or Phillips Brewery ($9 for a flight of four beers). Phillips also has the option of whiskey and gin flights. Food is also cheaper at both breweries. Had I stuck with my original plan I would have stayed under the $40.
My day was mellow and a bit lonely. Had my friends shown up we still would have checked out Quazar’s, but the plan was to hit a dollar store and then head over to Clover Point and Spiral Beach.
The purpose of hitting the dollar store was for lawn games: bocce ball, horseshoes, and lawn darts, all of which cost around $3 each. There were also kites, gliders, bubbles, and water guns. One suggestion on most Pinterest summer bucket lists was water-balloon fights; I want to do that this summer. Somewhere deep in my camping gear is a small bocce ball set. I find it’s more fun to play bocce ball on the beach than grass because the bumpy sand gives more of a challenge. I recommend spending the $3 to test it out; small backpack-sized sets run from $17 to $26. It’s one of my favourite summer games.
Laying on the beach wasn’t allowed in this adventure, but painting rocks and building rock towers was fair game. I’m not sure which is more fun, hunting for the best rocks for a tower or the quest to get the tower higher (the best tower I’ve ever built was about 2 feet tall). Painting rocks can be a lot of fun in a group and the bonus is having something decorative to take home. While it’s nice to lay on the beach and relax, activities can build more memories at the beach.
For crafty people, beaches can offer objects to create wind chimes or garden decorations. A day at the beach can become a scavenger hunt for seashells, small pieces of driftwood, cool rocks, or other small items. My neighbour finds beautiful rocks at Spiral Beach; he refinishes tabletops with them.
While lying on the beach or sitting around a campfire with friends, there are still ways to make it more memorable. Find some funny videos and see who in the group can stifle their laughter. Lip-reading challenges can be hilarious—pick any topic and each person says something related to that topic while everyone else tries to figure out what they’re saying. There’s also the good old alphabet challenge as a reliable—and free—good time.
Let’s not forget music: turn your streaming music library into a Magic 8 Ball by asking it a question and putting the library on shuffle—the title of the first song is the answer to the question.
Every summer also needs the ultimate playlist. Search through whatever app you use and find the songs that will make this summer stand out. Take it a step further and make playlists for summer relaxation and summer activities.
Music lovers might enjoy hunting for “new to them” artists. Check the bargain bins of music stores for cheap albums then head home to listen to it. Listening to the album isn’t an outdoor activity but nice to do after a day out with friends. My son and I grab cheap vinyl every now and then and chill at home. Streaming music is convenient but it’s a whole different experience listening to vinyl.
A game that my son and I have dubbed “music war” can be played anywhere music can be streamed, which is pretty much everywhere. We take turns playing a song that we think is better than the last song played. Sometimes we try to stay within the same genres as each other or if one person plays a solo female/male artist the other person will do the same. Other times it’s all over the place and we’re purposely trying to confuse each other. We’ve never had a clear winner; I simply end the game after a couple of hours.
The cheap and free ideas don’t end there. For the more coordinated and confident people (of which I am neither), there are many TikTok dances to learn and film. I attempted this once and failed miserably (don’t bother looking for the video, as there isn’t one; I never managed to learn the dance). I even get lost in the step-by-step videos; I’m that bad. It was still fun to try; my kid and I had a good laugh.
I like to people watch. I’m a bit silly and tend to make stories up for people. It’s fun to make up stories about who they are, where they’re going, and why they’re moving the way they are (slow, quick, looking around, staring off into space). If the people are having a conversation, I’ll create a fake conversation for them; it’s more fun with a friend who joins in.
For a night out, the HarbourCats are a good option when they’re home. Adult prices range from $15 to $35, and Tuesdays have $10 seats. Save-On Foods sells ticket vouchers for $11, valid for a general admission ticket. If baseball isn’t your thing, or you don’t want to watch a full game, it’s free admission during the seventh-inning stretch (standing room only). On July 14 and 29, there are fireworks, which, in my opinion, are the best in Victoria. The music and choreography of the fireworks are on a different level than Symphony Splash or Canada Day. I highly recommend checking it out this summer, especially since admission is free.
Some activities cost a bit more than $40. Kayaking and stand-up paddleboarding rentals start around $40 plus tax for two hours. There are rentals by the hour at Thetis Lake, the Gorge Waterway, Gonzales Beach, and Willows Beach. A few companies rent by the day, week, and even month. This is on my summer bucket list; I’ve done it in Kelowna but not in Victoria.
Fresh, off-the-boat crab is a treat every seafood lover needs to try. There are two ways to get fresh crab: buy it or catch it. Sidney Pier is a good place to catch crab, and the type of trap that works best there runs around $25, a worthwhile investment for people who like fishing. A single-day fishing licence can be purchased for $5.66 for residents or $7.53 for non-residents; the daily catch limit is four crabs.
My friends and I use fish heads as bait, which adds about another $10 to $15 when we run four traps. Like all fishing, there is no guarantee of catching a crab, but it’s still fun to hang out at the dock. The last time I went crabbing we spent half a day at Sidney Pier, ran four traps, and caught eight crabs; only two of us had licences so that was our limit.
After spending a day outside having crab at home is a tasty treat. Whether caught or purchased it’s important to learn how to properly prepare crab, an island experience on its own.
If you don’t like crab but do enjoy other types of seafood, Fisherman’s Wharf has more options to check out at the fish market. While there, check out the float houses, artisan shop, candy store, or grab some ice cream. Up the hill from the wharf along Erie Street is Fisherman’s Wharf Park, where one of the City of Victoria pop-up music stages can be found.
With Victoria having the most restaurants per capita than any other city in Canada, a summer-long activity could include trying some of the local establishments. A cheap version would be to try ice cream places but other themes with higher budgets could be pubs, patios, or types of food. There are so many options, it’s possible to pick streets, with the best food found on Yates Street or Government Street. Me? I’d go for food trucks and ice cream.
A larger group activity that can be a bit more of an investment is to have a DIY backyard carnival. The more people that pitch in, the cheaper it will be. Many of the supplies can be purchased at a dollar store or found at a thrift store to keep costs down.
Balloon darts require a board, tape, balloons, and some darts. Hardware stores often have end cuts of wood for a discount which would work for the board. If you’re lucky, you might find darts at a thrift store or have a friend with some; tape and balloons are dollar-store items.
A fishing pond can be made from a small wading pool or similar container, pole, string, magnets, hot glue, and foam fish (or whatever shapes are available). Magnets, string, foam shapes, and a glue gun with glue sticks can all be purchased at the dollar store and a broom handle can be used for a pole. The cost of the “fishing hole” really depends on what is used. Any container that’s around 6 inches deep would work.
Ring toss is easy to set up, although not necessarily cheap. It’s about $9 plus tax and deposit for a six-pack of glass Coke bottles. If you’re lucky you might be able to find some at a thrift store. Rings to toss can be purchased from a dollar store.
A similar, and probably cheaper, option is a ping-pong toss. This uses jars and three ping-pong balls. Jars can be purchased at the dollar store, and, possibly, so can ping pong balls. Canadian Tire sells a set of six ping pong balls starting at $5, so there wouldn’t be a huge savings at the dollar store. Small mason jars will work as well and run between $13 to $18 for a dozen, probably more useful than jars from the dollar store.
The tin can knock down could be the cheapest game, especially before recycling day. It needs six cans and three balls. Large tomato cans work best; turn them upside down for easier stacking.
Another relatively cheap option is guessing the number of jellybeans in a jar. Find any size of glass container and fill it with jellybeans, making sure to count them, and put the lid on.
Don’t forget carnival snacks—every carnival needs to have popcorn, cotton candy, ice cream, or popsicles. Try giving a little kick to some homemade popsicles by adding alcohol. There are various recipes online; this too is on my bucket list and will most likely become a new birthday tradition.
If you know, or can track down, a carpentry student, someone skilled with power tools, and someone with artistic talent, invite them to join forces and create a funny photo stand. Take some wood, cut a hole large enough to stick a head through, stand it straight up, then paint a picture of a fun character such as a clown, pirate, or even the Camosun Chargers’ mascot, Rampage. People can take photos with their phones as carnival souvenirs.
The carnival is two days of fun because it’s one day hunting for everything needed and setting it up and another day to enjoy the fun. After the first carnival, a second carnival will be cheaper or can have additional games.
My summer bucket list has more activities; I had to stop looking at Pinterest because my list kept growing. However, while being a student on a budget is hard, with some creativity and planning it’s possible to have a variety of fun adventures alone or with friends for less than $40.