There are probably more ways to design a luxury staycation than most realize, with better options than replication because these products and features enhance a home past staycation.
It’s summer, and for many, that means vacation! Unfortunately, as COVID-19 cases continue to rise in the US and other hotspots globally, travel isn’t always feasible. Traditional means of transportation—planes, trains, ships—represent a significant risk. What if a family’s travel budget was put into designing and delivering an environment of blissful, luxurious relaxation? Consider that a Walt Disney World four-day vacation for a family of four, with two kids, both 10 and up, including park tickets, a stay at Disney’s Animal Kingdom lodge, and meals comes to about $5,700. It’s time to translate that cost into a luxury at-home staycation. Here are a few ideas to help you bask in relaxation and fun:
Image: Breville
What could be more decadent than homemade ice cream anytime you want it? These days, a single scoop of artisanal ice cream can set you back about $6 a scoop. However, in less than an hour, you can make frozen desserts, from sorbet to ice cream to gelato with a choice of 12 consistencies, with the Breville ice cream maker. The smart programming advises when to drop in add-ins like chocolate chips and nuts and other flavors. Choose Fahrenheit or Celsius; it weighs nearly 31 lbs, was designed in Australia, and made in China, for use in North America.
Image: VivoHome
The coronavirus effectively cut out the movie-theater experience. But this 16-foot Blow up Mega Movie Projector Screen makes the outdoors the setting for a big screen adventure. Featuring front and rear projection, it comes with a free-standing mount and has an aspect ratio of 16:9. Tethers, yard stakes, a quiet and powerful 350W air blower, and a 420D oxford handy bag are included. A 20-foot version is $280.
Samsung’s new outdoor QLED 4K TV, The Terrace, with its soundbar.
Image: Samsung
The Terrace is the first outdoor 4K TV Samsung has produced. It has a rate of MR240 for motion-intensive content, such as sporting events. Anti-reflective coating minimizes glare, and the TV’s IP55 rating protects against water and dust. It has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity and comes with Tizen, Samsung’s Smart TV platform which features Samsung TV Plus, a free linear TV video service with more than 120 channels and supports multiple voice services including Bixby, Amazon Alexa, and Google Assistant. It comes in a 65-inch model ($5,000) and a 75-inch model ($6,500). Price listed is for the 55-inch model.
Image: CineMood
This super easily portable 3-inch, half-pound box is a great way to use an entire wall outside or a wall and ceiling inside. This 360-degree VR includes free games and videos and also supports Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, and YouTube 360. The portable projector can cast moving images onto walls and ceiling, and turns an entire room into a 360° experience to explore national parks or galaxies. There’s 32 GB of storage and iOS screen mirroring for personal content. (Laptop mirroring and HDMI are not supported and iTunes, Hulu, and similar streaming apps can’t be mirrored.)
Image: Sobro
Luxury can be defined as a languid stay at a fancy hotel, so why not replicate at home? Each Sobro Smart Side Table features a built-in refrigerator for arms’ reach refreshing cold beverages and snacks. It includes Bluetooth speakers, USB charging ports, power outlets, and a wireless charging pad, which can charge two phones simultaneously. There’s an intelligent sleep mode and alarm, a motion-activated front LED, and a variety of colors for the back LED. Dimmers are located at the back of the smart tables. Available in black, white, white/wood, black/wood. Original retail, $900 each. Price is for a single table.
Image: PolyScience
Replicate a five-star restaurant, test your culinary expertise, become the host with most: Order top-quality items beyond budget, such as lobster, filet mignon, scallops, roast of lamb, and more. Create a several course meal with (very good) wine for each course or a variety of cocktails with top-shelf liquor. Serve cherries jubilee, or crème brûlée. Pull everything together with the Control Freak Culinary Induction cooking system, a commercial-grade precision cooker, which holds cooking temps from 77-degrees Fahrenheit to 482-degrees Fahrenheit, as it checks temps 20 times per second for instantaneous adjustments for “sublime dishes to exact standards,” boasts PolyScience.
Image: uuffoo
For an outdoor oasis—the highlight of the staycation—choose a few of these smart outdoor end tables, which have Bluetooth speakers, wireless chargers, LED accent lights, 360-degree sound. Available in two-color finishes, brown (seen here) and grey. After all, everyone needs a place to set their drink, listen to tunes, and charge their smartphones.
Image: Smagreho
One of the most decadent things to do on vacation is to get a massage at a five-star resort. The price for four family members could easily supersede the cost of this voice and app remote control massage chair with Bluetooth heating, Bluetooth player, and full Body Electric Zero Gravity shiatsu massage. A smartphone controls the RealRelax app. If you have Echo, it can be intelligent-voice controlled. Massages shoulders, arms, hips, calves and foot, with lower-back heating and eight rollers to the backrest (rollers and airbags massage speed are adjustable).
Image: Sonance
An outdoor oasis is essential for the full staycation effect, these Sonos speakers can be installed in a backyard or patio, and can be powered with an amp. The speakers are engineered to withstand humidity, water, salt spray, heat, UV rays, and freezing temperatures. Contains two each of outdoor speakers, speaker grilles, FastMount brackets, and wiring terminal covers.
Image: Napoleon
No outdoor oasis is complete without a grill. A rotisserie is included, as well as 99,000 BTU’s, five stainless steel burners, with 1,140-inches total cooking area. There’s an infrared “Sizzle Zone” side burner and an infrared rear rotisserie burner. It offers an ovenlike performance and searing from Napoleon’s distinctive wave cooking grid. The LED spectrum night light control knobs have near limitless color options making night-time entertaining a breeze, and glow red when the gas is left on as a safety feature. A natural gas version is $2,650.