Discover the hottest summer self-care ideas for adults here. From indulging in summer beach reads to exercising outdoors, now is the time to boost your mental health and well-being with these summer self-care tips. You’ll feel relaxed. Let’s celebrate the season of lazy, hazy days in the sun by taking the summer self-care challenge!
Summer Self-Care Ideas and Activities For Your Bucket List
Summer self-care involves staying hydrated, protecting skin with sunscreen, wearing light and breathable clothing, eating fresh fruits and vegetables, seeking shade during peak sun hours, and exercising during cooler parts of the day to maintain health and well-being.
Quick Overview
These summer self-care ideas focus on:
- Maximizing longer days of sunlight
- Outdoor time
- Staying hydrated and healthy
- Sun protection
- Travel and celebrations
Full List of Summer Self-Care Ideas
Attend a bonfire.
Attend a graduation party, wedding, or another seasonal event for someone you love.
Attend an outdoor festival.
Attend an outdoor concert.
Attend an outdoor sporting event, such as a major league baseball game.
Bask in the sunshine for 20 minutes a day to get Vitamin D.
Breathe in the fresh air.
Burn a floral, fruity, fresh, citrus, or ocean-inspired candle.
Celebrate summer holidays (in the U.S.A., that’s Memorial Day, Father’s Day, Independence Day, and Labor Day).
Celebrate the Summer Solstice.
Collect seashells.
Cook something seasonal, like zucchini, corn, or tomatoes.
Cut or buy fresh flowers, like hydrangeas.
Dance in the rain.
Decorate your home for the season.
Do something in the early evening when it’s light outside.
Do something on a boat, like sailing or fishing.
Do yoga and/or exercise outdoors for physical activity.
Drink a refreshing beverage.
Drink coffee or tea al fresco at a café.
Eat fresh produce that energizes you, like peaches, watermelon, or freshly grown herbs.
Eat outdoors.
Fly a kite.
Garden.
Get or give yourself a summer-themed manicure and/or pedicure for beach-ready nails.
Give someone flowers.
Go camping.
Go on a road trip.
Grow fresh herbs or vegetables, like basil or mint.
Hang out at a park.
Have a garage sale.
Have a picnic.
Host a barbecue.
Hydrate regularly with a water bottle.
Journal about summer, warm weather, nostalgia, anticipation, vacations, etc.
Limit screen time with a social media detox.
Listen to a summer-themed playlist.
Listen to the natural sounds of summer, like waves and birds.
Look for a rainbow after the rain.
Make fresh popsicles.
Make s’mores.
Meet up with family and/or friends.
Open a window.
Paint, draw, or color nature.
Photograph nature.
Plan something fun and relaxing.
Plan your goals for the second half of the year.
Play a sport outdoors, like baseball, tennis, frisbee, pickleball, or volleyball.
Practice meditation.
Practice seasonal gratitude for summer.
Practice seasonal mindfulness for summer.
Read a summer-themed book and/or summer romance novel.
Relax on a swing or hammock.
Shop at a local farmer’s market.
Sit or play in the sand.
Spend time outdoors with a pet or animal.
Stock your beach bag with essentials like summer skin care products such as sunscreen with a high SPF.
Sunbathe.
Swim.
Take a bike ride.
Take a break.
Take a nap (preferably outdoors).
Take a summer reading challenge.
Take a walk or a hike.
Travel somewhere warm.
Visit a garden, arboretum, or greenhouse.
Visit an ice cream shop.
Visit an orchard or farm to pick blueberries or strawberries.
Walk on the beach.
Watch the fireworks.
Watch a summer sporting event, like baseball.
Watch the birds.
Watch the stars.
Watch the sunrise and/or sunset.
Wear lighter, brighter clothes.
Shop the Summer Self-Care Essentials
SHOP THE POST
Summer Self-Care Tips
I always think of summer with nostalgia. It’s when we were free to play as children. Long days and nights outside and in the pool with family and friends were abundant. Baseball always served as the unofficial sound of summer lifestyle, and we regularly spent free time at local places like the library and parks.
So much of that gets lost as we age and take on more responsibilities. It becomes more of an effort to squeeze a bit of self-care in here and there versus luxuriously indulging in it over the course of a few months.
I like to plan ahead for my self-care during summer. Otherwise, it can pass by in the blink of an eye!
We already have our annual summer vacation to Martha’s Vineyard (and Martha’s Vineyard bookstores) booked, and I just added a few more ideas to my list, including planning a few other trips, visiting the local botanical gardens, and hanging our new birdhouse.
I think Jenny Han said it best in this summer reading quote from The Summer I Turned Pretty series:
“Everything good, everything magical happens between the months of June and August.”
So, let’s have a magical summer that feels as relaxing and rejuvenating as it should!
Take the Summer Self-Care Challenge to Feel Happy
Now that you know all the best seasonal self-care ideas, take the summer self-care challenge to create healthy habits and boost your mood! Use the Instagram story template below to track your own custom season of taking care of YOU.
Related Self-Care Posts
Practice self-love and wellness in other seasons:
I wrote the top ones in my calendar for June so I would actually do them
That’s the perfect way to approach it!