College students are known to spend some of their spring breaks on the sunny beaches of Mexico in big resorts.

For the rest of us, the Bay Area offers countless alternatives to expensive vacations. Spring break activities are all over the place for college students with low vacation funds. 

If you are still looking for a beach adventure, then heading down to Santa Cruz will be the best choice. The Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk will be open seven days a week starting March 28.

The boardwalk offers free entry and entertainment with the option of purchasing daily ride wristbands starting at $39.95. You can walk up and down the boardwalk hitting all the shops, or go inside and win prizes from the arcade. 

If you want to spend time in a big city environment with family or friends, then head on up to San Francisco where various kinds of activities exist to keep you busy. 

In San Francisco, you can spend anywhere from $17 to $30 for all day entry to the zoo, tickets to many museums, site-seeing groups, or even small concerts. Free entry is available at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, or SFMOMA, to those who are members. 

Just a 15-minute drive away, you can find UC Berkeley’s Botanical Gardens, which are open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. First Wednesday’s of the month offer free admission to everybody. 

April 1 luckily is Wednesday, right in the middle of spring break. Afterward, you could easily walk around downtown Berkeley to find a range of diverse places to eat and shop.

A few people like to spend their holidays being active. If that’s what you enjoy, you can hike Mission Peak or drive out to Almaden and run the many trails. The only thing you need to watch out for is the wildlife! 

Santa Clara offers the option of attending the Great America amusement park. The park open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on the weekends, providing full park access for $35. 

Another option available for playing games while enjoying food and drinks is heading down to Dave and Busters. In Milpitas or Daly City, you can add money to your power card, allowing you to play games until late hours of the night. 

For a more relaxed spring break plan, many people choose to attend cheap concerts, go to the movies, hit the mall and shop, play mini-golf and attend sporting events.

A drive to the SAP center in downtown San Jose offers opportunities to show your support for the San Jose Sharks and watch some exciting hockey.

You actually don’t need to leave the country or your hometown in order to enjoy a memorable spring break. Fun activities surround us on every corner of the Bay Area, you just need to know where to look.