Beyond its religious significance, the Easter season is a time to relax, take a much-needed break from work or school, and simply re-calibrate. The holiday in itself stretches for only two working days — Good Friday and Easter Monday — but there is no student or working-class adult who wouldn’t welcome the idea of an extra day or two off.
Here are some awesome ways to make the most of the long weekend on a budget:
1. Have A Cook-In: The idea of trying out a nice restaurant with your family during the holidays is always very appealing. Sometimes, however, you may find that you have always drawn out your budget for the month, and visiting that new place that just opened down the road may strain your finances. Not to worry, you can still have a great culinary experience without shaking up your account balance too much. Just check out the food market nearest to you, buy ingredients for a meal you haven’t tried out before, and check out the recipe on YouTube or that food blog you enjoy reading. By the time you finish, you would have engaged in a bit of kitchen adventure without having to spend too much either.
2. Watch Movies Indoors: You don’t need to go to the cinema to have a wholesome Easter experience. All you need is an active cable TV or Showmax subscription, a comfortable couch, a few drinks, some popcorn, and a fully-charged phone or laptop. It could be one of the old Jesus of Nazareth movies (that local channels love to air) or one of the family-friendly films on your favourite streaming platform. You could (and actually should) invite your friends over, and even in the absence of a large projector screen, you would have spent the holiday in a pretty satisfying way.
3. Attend A Religious Service: This does not necessarily have all the fireworks that come with movie time, but it’s still an excellent way to spend the holiday. For Christians, it provides an opportunity for reflecting on the essence and purpose of the Easter celebration. The joyous atmosphere that accompanies Easter Sunday has an infectious swing to it, so be sure that the smiles will find you.
4. Play Fun Games With Friends: Another way to enjoy Easter on a budget is to link up with your friends and engage in fun games. Outdoor activities like go-kart racing and paint-balling are nice, but there are also indoor games that you can enjoy with your friends if, as they say, funds are limited. From Ludo to Charades, Scrabble and Chess, there is a lot to keep you and your gang entertained without having to step out of the house.
5. Celebrate One Week Later: If the Easter frenzy appears to be overwhelming, you can decide to relieve yourself of the pressure and postpone all your plans until the following weekend. That way, costs would have reduced marginally, event centres would not be overcrowded, and you can still celebrate with your loved ones without feeling like what you are doing is stale.
Bonus: Or You Can Invest!
Well, it’s not the type of ‘spend’ you would ordinarily think of, but it has long-term perks. For instance, instead of spending on a get-away trip at the moment, you could use N5,000 to invest in the Plutus Fund account. All you have to do is download the Afrinvest Plutus Fund subscription form. Then you return the completed form and relevant KYC documentation to us either by email to aaml@afrinvest.com. Or you can drop it off at any Afrinvest offices. Upon receipt of the documents, your account will be opened and Afrinvest will communicate it to you!
Easter comes at a crunch time of the year, right in the middle of all the hustle and bustle, but it is worthy of celebrations nonetheless, and you don’t have to bore a hole in your pocket to have fun. Who says you can’t have a good time with just N10,000 in your account?
