5 Summer Activities You Can Safely Enjoy During a Pandemic

You can observe social distancing *and* have a blast this summer!

Summer is in full swing—which means anything from beach bumming, traveling and shopping for summer dresses, to taking up art lessons and playing hoops. But with COVID-19 still a health risk, it may be wiser to just stay safe at home. 

It may not be your perfect idea of summer, but guess what? You can still do exciting things at home or outdoors while observing physical distancing and health protocols to make summer 2021 equally fun! It’s about finding the balance between safe outdoor activities and creative ways to stay cool in the summer, even during this pandemic. 

We bet you’ll get pumped up with these 5 summer activities during COVID-19!

1. Hit the road and rent a vacation house

Some air travels have resumed, but if you’d rather wait it out before flying again because you haven’t been vaccinated, having a laidback weekend deserves a spot on your to-do list this summer.

Drive up to a vacation spot just outside the metro and book your family a cozy vacation house. If you fancy fishing or kayaking, look for accommodations by the lake or beach. You and your family can head up to Laguna, Batangas or Rizal. Get your fishing rod out and grill your catch afterward for fresh seafood galore.

Just a reminder, though: Since leisure travel may still be limited in certain areas, be sure to check first what GCQ travel guidelines are in place before going to your summer destination. 

        2. Get an easy-set-up swimming pool at home

Miss swimming already? No problem—you and the kids can still splash around in the safety and comfort of your home. There’s a wide variety of outdoor swimming pools for home use, from the inflatable types to above-ground swimming pools.

Choose a spot like your home garden where you can set up the pool and soak up for hours of fun in the water. Don’t forget to prepare snacks for your little swimmers to feast on once hunger kicks in. 

One more thing—be a responsible plantito or plantita by maximizing your used pool water to irrigate the grass growing around your lawn area.

RELATED: 2021 Indoor Summer Activities For Kids Out Of School

3. Spend a glamping night at home

Chill and unwind on a weekend summer night by glamping. Glamping is a mashup of the words “glamor” and “camping,” putting an elegant spin on sleeping outdoors. Here are some glamping ideas to do at home:

• Set up camp in your home backyard or garage—wherever there is level ground to pitch a tent.
• Bring in foldable chairs, bean bags, lots of pillows and soft blankets. Use these for lounging around the tent or when it’s time to sleep. Rechargeable lights and fans will come in handy, too. 

• Make a charcuterie board for you and your company to indulge in a variety of cold cuts, fruits, cheeses, crackers, chocolate and chips. Don’t forget your sparkling water!
• For entertainment, play the good old board games, challenge one another in riddles or trivia or stream music or movies.

4. Watch a movie via drive

If you want to up your viewing experience while following social distancing rules, you’re in for a wonderful treat at drive-in cinemas. There are already Metro Manila malls that have transformed their parking lots into a movie theater of sorts with large-screen digital cinema projectors and surround speakers. 

Your movie tickets, which you will have to purchase online, come with complimentary popcorn and bottled water. You’ll be assigned a seat, err, a parking slot, for your car for the drive-in viewing. Then, you can sit back and enjoy the movie on the big screen.

5. Walk, jog or bike outside

Summer is a good time to get into a fitness routine and a more active lifestyle. COVID summer activities like going for a walk, running, hiking or biking within the neighborhood or at the local park can give you that healthy dose of sunshine at a safe distance from the crowds.

You could also engage in social distancing sports because, let’s face it—we need these worthwhile activities in our life, pandemic or not. 

A Summer to Remember

The summer of 2021 is definitely one for the books. It’s different from the past summers we’ve had, but on the bright side, you don’t have to completely give up the activities you love doing at this time of the year. 

With a little bit of patience and creativity, you can come up with new and exciting ways to spend summer safely. Heck, we had fun preparing this list of pandemic-safe summer activities—we hope you’ll enjoy doing them, too!