During spring break one either goes on a family vacation to a nice sunny place or stays in town and just enjoys the break. For high school students, spring break means going on a nice vacation, catching up on sleep and possibly just enjoying the weather if Mother Nature treats Owatonna right.

Staying in Town

It can get kind of boring and students usually want to be kept busy, that is where the things to do during spring break come in. For example, the bowling alley can be one of those places that high schoolers tend to go to bowl, play laser tag or do the many fun things at the bowling alley. Another place is Blast soft serve DO THIS====check Facebook when it opens, that is, if they are open and the weather is nice enough for some ice cream. Junior Emily Prohaski said that one fun thing  to do in town is, “Go to the movie theater.” The movie theater is a favorite amongst the high schoolers here, especially going there on a Tuesday which has the convenient $ 5  Tuesday deal.

There is that option that one can head over to a friend’s house and just hangout like back in the day. After a while that gets boring and friends might suggest to go out and eat at a restaurant or fast food place. Applebee’s is a classic and they have the half-off appetizers after 9 p.m. and that always comes in a clutch. If 9 p.m. is too late, there is the option of the two for twenty dollars which is a good deal. Another place is Buffalo Wild Wings, which is similar to Apple Bee’s and has specials depending on the day of the week. The most popular food place in town for high schoolers would have to be McDonald’s. McDonald’s is that hangout spot and you can always get that McPick for two deal or any of their popular sandwiches.

Leaving town

Luckily, Owatonna is somewhat closer to bigger cities. For example. Burnsville, Mankato, and Rochester are all within a 45 minute drive and those cities offer a lot of fun thing. Let’s start with Burnsville, they have a the Burnsville mall and if you feel like dropping some cash head on over there. Another place is Grand Slam which an indoor venue that has batting cages, laser tag, mini golf, a big trampoline, and last but not least arcade games. Those are not the only things in Burnsville, if you’re a thrill seeker, Buck Hill and ProKart Racing are two places that’ll satisfy your thrill seeking needs. Buck Hill is for those who want to hit the slopes and have a grand time skiing, on the other hand is Prokart Racing which is a go kart racing placing. If you are a speedy driver and love racing check out Prokart Racing.

Mankato also offers fun spots, if you are looking to just walk around and enjoy things go on over to Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota or the Carnegie Art Center. Others went to be active and doing fun things, the WOW Zone offers similar things to that of the Grand Slam. Last but not least Rochester has tons of things to offer like the other two cities. They have the Rochester Art Center, also you can explore and tour the Mayo Clinic Buildings if you are into medicine or tour the city, and if you want to be a kid again.   Bounce World is the place. Bounce World is a fifteen thousand square feet play land which has inflatable balls that rotate from a large Jolly Jumpz Collection and parents if you want to sit back and relax they offer a lounge with free wifi and a big screen t.v.

Getting out of town is another option as well, possibly going shopping at the Mall of America.  The Mall of America is located in Bloomington, Minnesota, and is the biggest mall in the USA. At the mall, they offer the Nickelodeon Universe, an indoor amusement park where one can be a child again, a huge Lego imagination center, and Sea Life. Enjoy the five hundred forty shops including the many food spots. Since the beginning of 2017, The Mall of America  has added quite a lot of new restaurants. One popular restaurant is Tim Horton’s, the renowned Canadian coffee and doughnut place Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers, which is another hot spot for high schoolers. The closest one is in Apple Valley, Minnesota so it is convenient for those going up there to take detour and enjoy a good meal.  Also, while in Apple Valley, check out the MN Zoo.

Closer to Owatonna,the place that high schoolers would most likely go if they went out of town is Chipotle, almost everyone enjoys Chipotle and the nearest one is in Burnsville,  Rochester and Mankato  which is only 45 minutes away and have shopping and movie theaters with recliners.

Spring break can mean many things, some just want to stay home and enjoy some personal time. Junior Kenny Johnson said that his plan for spring break was, “Nothing, absolutely nothing.” Nothing is better than enjoying the time off and getting prepared for the last quarter of the school year. Minnesota’s weather is very unpredictable, but if Mother Nature treats us good, take advantage of the nice weather!