We had extended family in town last month and we wanted to get away and spend some quality time together. They suggested Seabrook, Washington – a small beach front community near Ocean Shores. And I’m so glad they did. We spent four glorious days digging in the sand, soaking in the sun (and rain) and most of all – spending some serious quality time with our family. I can pretty much guarantee that we’ll return, many times.
Seabrook is a essentially a beach front community, full of beautiful homes perched on a hill overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
You rent homes – most owned by loving families who also spend their family vacations there. Renting homes sounds expensive, and I was a little hesitant at first, but it ended up being one of the most affordable vacations we’ve been on because:
- We split the house with three families. With four bedrooms, two living areas, a full kitchen, a toy room in the attic and three bathrooms – there was plenty of room for six adults and four children. Splitting the cost with other families makes the cost similar to a hotel room (or less after you figure everything included).
- Full kitchen means cooking family style. We saved a TON of money by having a full kitchen at our disposal. Three families and we each picked a night to make dinner. We made tacos with food from our stockpile (plus some fresh items picked up). Over a four-day period we ate out only once (by choice) – which is next to impossible when renting a hotel room. Plus we had the luxury of making foods the kids will eat and feeding them when they were hungry, without having to pay a fortune for convenience foods.
- Tons of FREE activities. I was shocked at how many FREE things there were to do once we got there. In fact, there were so many FREE activities I’m listing them out below.
FREE THINGS TO DO AT SEABROOK
Community Events – While we were there Seabrook was having a Gnome Festival – complete with a scavenger hunt for the kids and other activities.
We spent hours digging a “submarine” and used crab shells for the controls. It was the coolest, just ask my son. 🙂
The Beach. Walking distance to the beach, we spent hours digging in the dirt, beach combing and even playing in the water. You can “borrow” beach toys from the Seabrook Vacation Rental office – on the honor system, no fees!
My daughter flys her first kite.
Go Fly a Kite. I packed our $1.30 kites from Fred Meyer and we spent lots of time flying kites at the beach!
Community Swimming Pool, Hot Tub – When we’d had too much sand and sun, we’d head to the pool for more FREE fun. The community pool is centrally located and included with your home rental.
Bike riding – Our rental house (the Bramble Berry) had two bikes on the porch for use, but you can also rent bicycles for a nominal fee from the Seabrook rental office.
We roasted marshmallows and made s’mores at the wonderful fire pit at the Bramble Berry house.
Fire pit, s’mores – Our rental house (the Bramble Berry) has a great fire pit in the backyard – again provided FREE entertainment and we all enjoyed s’mores and sitting in the sun.
Kid’s playground – A neighborhood playground gives the kids yet another outdoor activity. Again, it’s FREE.
This play room in the attic of the Bramble Berry house was a HUGE hit! The kids rode tricycles around, played dodge ball, chased each other around and begged to play up there.
Photo credit: Bramble Berry house.
Kid’s play room – We were so lucky that our rental house (the Bramble Berry) that had a full play room in the attic. It was complete with painted “roads” and tricycles, balls and more. The kids begged to go up into the playroom.
I loved looking at all the houses – each with unique decorations and themes.
Nature and neighborhood walks – There are a ton of paths and places to walk. Each home in the Seabrook community has a unique look and style. Just walking through the neighborhood is entertainment.
Wouldn’t be Washington without a slug sighting! Check out this big one, I put a penny down for perspective. 🙂
My daughter’s first s’more. It won’t be her last!
We think it’s a hermit crab. It tried to crawl into my brother-in-law’s Croc underwater!
We packed beads which entertained us one afternoon. We also played board games, played Uno and read books – in between trips to the pool and beach.
There is a restaurant at Seabrook, but we only ate there once because we made all our meals family style at the house. The restaurant was super kid friendly and the food was affordable!
My son and daughter look at the big Seabrook map on the way to the beach.
We were blessed with beautiful July weather and played in the water at the beach.
So what do you think? You wanna go to Seabrook?
ENTER TO WIN!
The owners of the Bramble Berry House have graciously offered up a one-night stay to a lucky Queen Bee reader! Enter to win a one-night stay (valued at $195) for use during off-peak times, minimum two-night stay – so essentially you are getting buy one, get one FREE nights! This is like 50% off the price of this fabulous rental. Check the Bramble Berry Website for off-peak dates.
PLUS, to help cover the cost of your second night, I’m pitching in a $100 gift card good for any Seabrook rental!
How to enter – There are a MAXIMUM of four (4) entries possible. Please leave a SEPARATE comment for each entry – because each comment is considered one entry. Do not comment in the Facebook comment area (I’m trying to remove that), but where it says Leave a Comment below.
- REQUIRED ENTRY – Leave a comment on this post. Tell me what you think you’d enjoy most at Seabrook!
- Head over to Queen Bee Coupons Facebook and “like” us. If you’re already a Facebook fan, share the giveaway with your friends by posting it on your wall. (If you aren’t seeing Queen Bee Facebook updates in your feed, you may need to comment or “like” a post every once in while). Leave a separate comment on this post saying you did this.
- Sign up for Queen Bee Coupons daily email and leave a comment telling me you did this. If you already subscribe, leave a comment saying so.
- Follow Queen Bee Coupons on Twitter and tweet about the giveaway.
Tweet something like: Vacation? Enter to win a one-night stay at Seabrook, Washington + $100 gift card. @QueenBeeCoupons @SeabrookWA http://wp.me/pFgsr-i5c. Leave a comment and let me know you tweeted.
This giveaway ends Thursday, August 16, 2012 at 8 p.m. PST. Pay special attention to the email you use, because this is how I will contact the winner. I will select one random comment after the giveaway closes August 16 and I will contact the winner by email. You will have 48 hrs to respond to my email. I will also post the winner info here on the site.
See my other travel posts:
- One of our favorite beach spots on the Oregon coast, south of Lincoln City
- Our trip to the Oregon Coast Aquarium + FREE child’s admission coupon
- Staycation ideas all across the United States – Frugal, fun summer activities
- Staycation Seattle (Puget Sound) – Festivals and events, museums, activities
- Saving money in New York City (I won my trip from a sweepstakes!)
Disclosure: Bramble Berry offered a discount for our stay in exchange for me to share my thoughts and reviews on my stay. All opinions, reviews, suggestions, photographs and adorable children, are mine.
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