The phrase “Money can’t buy happiness” is something that I have always thought to be true. You should never feel as though the only source of happiness in your life is money, but I will say… unfortunately enough, money tends to lead to some really fun stuff. During the summer, I used to spend all of my savings on my adventures. Now that I have to work part-time, and take classes, I have a lot less time and money to be spending on experiences. So, I’ve compiled a list of all of the fun things worth spending big money on during the summer. (May be so that I can thrive off the fact that someone is out there having fun for me)

1. Weekend Getaways: When I say this, I mean hop on a plane and head to Chicago, New York, maybe Florida. Or, if you like a road trip, hop in the car with your closest friends and enjoy a little time away from the real world if you have the chance! This includes the ever so popular trips up north, because anywhere that isn’t within an hours drive is “up north.”
2. 2.Lollapalooza: Well, it’s no Coachella, but lolla over the last 2 years has been some of my greatest summer experiences and memories. The lineup always offers a wide array of artists, but I in particular always find myself at the stages playing EDM, or other incredible artists that people dream of seeing live, all in one place, over a few days of perfection. Although, I promise you’ll be leaving with a lighter wallet, just do yourself a favor and bring a camelback water backpack for refilling all day, unless you have a spare $200 to spend strictly on water.
3. 3.Other Popular Music Festivals: I personally have been to a few smaller music festivals like Faster Horses, in Brooklyn MI. Or Movement in downtown Detroit. I have a lot of friends that travel to the ends of the earth for some music festivals, but they’re also such an incredible and unforgettable experience, it makes it hard pretty to claim it’s “not worth the money.” If you’re into it go to Electric Forest, Spring Awakening, Bonnaroo, Country Thunder, even some in foreign countries! When I have the money to go to Ultra in Europe, I’ll be sure to let you all know.
4. Lake Days: This is one of the cheaper fares usually, because you don’t always have to go far to get to a lake. I love a day on Lake Orion, which is pretty nearby, but everyone who has experienced it, knows there’s really no comparison to a day on Lake Michigan. This is the perfect, and most ideal way to get outside in my mind, so go for it, because the sun is good for you!

5. Visiting Friends: If you’re lucky, the cost of getting to your friends isn’t much because they’re just down the street. Unfortunately, college makes for a lot of friends from a lot of different hometowns. So, on a good day, I get to see my friends that live 10 minutes away, but when I get the chance, taking a little road trip to see friends is always worth some extra cash. You can’t buy memories, but you can buy stuff to make memories, sometimes.

So, yes, money can buy some temporary happiness every once and a while. (As you can see from all of my personal summer adventure photos) But, like I said, relying on a physical object for happiness really isn’t ideal. So, put your money to use when you have some extra and enjoy yourself! Yeah, it sucks that you have to pay so much for a few days of fun, but those few days of fun, will be days that you look back on for the rest of your life. Maybe it’s just me, but I think that’s pretty valuable.