25 Fun (and Even Free!) Spring Activities to Put on Your Warm Weather Bucket List
Picture this: It’s the first warm day that hints at spring approaching. There’s a buzz in the air as people begin planning their picnics and running outside in shorts in 65 degrees. Everyone starts dreaming about all the hope and excitement that comes with getting back outdoors and into some spring activities.
From al fresco brunch invites to weekend trips, there are plenty of ways to fill up your calendar when the weather’s nice, but sometimes so many options can make it hard to choose what to do. To save you from sunny-day decision paralysis, here’s a big list of things to do this spring — chock-full of fun (and even free!) activities to put on your bucket list.
1. Start Your Spring Garden
Early spring is the best time to start sowing the seeds that will become your abundant spring garden of flowers, herbs, and veggies. Start your seedlings indoors so they’ll be ready to hit the ground growing when the weather warms up.
2. Go for a Bike Ride
Put on your helmet and get a new perspective on your city. If you don’t have a bike, there are usually places you can rent them by the hour. Feeling the wind in your hair will bring back memories of childhood.
3. Take Happy Hour Outside
Whether you have a spacious yard, a petite back patio, or just a front stoop, start taking happy hour outside as soon as the weather begins to warm up. It’s amazing what an hour outside can do for your mood — and for separating work and life.
4. Install a Bird Feeder in Your Yard
Whether you’ve reached the bird-watching stage in life or you simply like the sound of birds singing outside your window, installing a bird feeder can bring feathered friends right to your window.
5. Paint Your Nails a Pretty Pastel
Even if powder pink or robin’s egg blue aren’t normally in your manicure lineup, painting your nails a pretty pastel shade is enough to put anyone in a spring mood.
6. Bake a Spring Cake
A light lemon cake or a gorgeously decorated white cake with berries seems like a spring ritual. It’s pretty, delicious, and feels like ushering in sunny days and sweet memories.
7. Host a Picnic
For small-space dwellers who lament the winter months because there’s no room to entertain, spring is your season. Instead of inviting your friends over, invite them to a local park and host a picnic dinner party (and don’t forget to bring a dinner party question).
8. Go for a Hike
Get outside and marvel at the way nature starts to come alive again in the spring. If you’re close to an area with hiking paths and mountains, wonderful! If you’re not, make do with what you have. An urban hike or simple walk through the park will still offer lots of opportunities for ogling over spring planters.
9. Explore Public Gardens
Does your city have a public garden? Even if you’ve never visited or don’t have it on your radar, there probably is one somewhere in your region. Plan a day to explore and learn about an interesting piece of your city’s history.
10. Plan a May Day Party
Gather friends to usher in spring with a May Day party. Make flower crowns, bouquets, and decorate spring cupcakes. Maypole not required.
11. Spend a Rainy Day at a Museum
When a spring shower lands on a weekend, it’s always a bummer. But you can make the most of it by spending a rainy day at a museum and taking in the work of artists who’ve captured the beauty of spring.
12. Learn a New Seasonal Recipe
Are you still trying to perfect cooking asparagus? Have you ever baked with rhubarb? Spring is the time to take advantage of all the vibrant produce and try out recipes that utilize the spring harvest in new ways.
13. Start a Post-Dinner Stroll Tradition
As the daylight lingers around a little longer, make it a tradition to take a post-dinner stroll. Get out and enjoy your neighborhood as the day begins to slow down. You might even find the best spot nearby to catch a vibrant sunset.
14. Treat Yourself to a Weekly Spring Bouquet
Nothing brings more joy to a home than fresh flowers. Whether yours are from Trader Joe’s or your own garden, try your hand at arranging a weekly spring bouquet. Switch it up each week with new blooms to stretch your creativity.
15. Paint En Plein Air
Whether you’re a former art major or someone who’s never successfully doodled in their life, spring is the time to find inspiration in the fresh air. Grab a paintbrush, paints, and a pad of watercolor paper, and let nature inspire you. It doesn’t need to be a masterpiece — it’s the process that counts.
16. Take Your Book Outside
Grab a book and head outside anytime you have a free hour or so. Spend time just breathing in the fresh air, poring over a good story, and appreciating the little moments that make spring such a special time.
17. Grab the Cheap Seats at a Game
Spring is when baseball season is just starting to warm up, so grab the cheap seats, a hot dog, a beer, and make an afternoon of it. It doesn’t have to be major league — the seats are even cheaper if it’s not.
18. Paint a Piece of Furniture
Some DIY projects are easier once you can take them outside. Painting furniture is one of those projects. Grab an old piece of furniture in need of a facelift and give it new life this spring. Don’t have any furniture on hand? Find something unique through a neighborhood Buy Nothing group.
19. Mix Up Your Spring Salads
Challenge yourself to make refreshing, Sweet Green-worthy salads for lunch at home. Try different combinations of spring fruits, vegetables, and herbs, then add a fresh, simple homemade dressing.
20. Add Flowers to Your Front Door
Grab an inexpensive terracotta pot and a few perennials to give your front door an instant burst of springtime color. Choose a low-maintenance flower like vincas or geraniums so you don’t even need to grow a green thumb.
21. Break Out the Breezy Clothes
There’s nothing better than shedding the winter layers and pulling on one easy breezy dress or lightweight linen button-down. Once it gets warm enough, get into your seasonal closet swap to make your wardrobe feel new all over again.
22. Hit the Pickleball Court
If you haven’t picked up a pickleball paddle yet, now is the time. Public courts have sprung up across the country, so try your hand at pickleball. All you need to find is a paddle and a partner.
23. Spend an Afternoon at a Cafe
People-watching picks up in the spring when everyone leaves their homes behind for sunshine and sidewalks. Grab a table at an outdoor cafe, pick up a latte or a bottle of rosé, and spend the afternoon watching the world go by.
24. Rent a Convertible
A drive out in the country is made even better with the wind whipping by and the sunshine on your skin. Rent a convertible for the afternoon, plan a few small town stops, and enjoy the freedom of the open road.
25. Hop on a Swing Set
Recapture your youth by jumping on a swing set and letting the fun of swinging, sliding, and hanging on the monkey bars take you back.