9 Things to Do this Black Friday Besides Black Friday

By Mike Maley

The most sustainable thing to buy this Black Friday? Nothing. The National Retail Federation reports that 166 million shoppers plan to participate in buying on Black Friday this year, and MarketWatch cites that more than 80% of purchases made on Black Friday ends up in landfills. Ooph.. that’s a tough stat to swallow. 🙈

Looking to stay away from shopping? Here are 9 ideas of things to do on Black Friday besides buying stuff:

1. See a movie: Here are the 20 movies in theaters that are certified fresh by critics and audiences on Rotten Tomatoes right now.
2. Have a game night: Dust off the classic board games if you’ve got them, or check out this list of trending games (like Codenames, Apples to Apples, and Fishbowl) and their virtual counterparts so you can play even if you don’t have the physical game on hand.
3. Read a book: Cozy up with a cup of cocoa and one of the titles on the recently released 100 Notable Books of 2022 by the New York Times.
4. Go outside. Take a walk, play touch football, or practice grounding.. People who spend time outdoors (2-3 hours) are 20% more likely to report high overall life satisfaction than those who do not.
5. Build a Fort: You might be thinking this is just for kids – to which we say HERE are 8 tips from an interior designer for building an awesome indoor fort. Yeah, seriously.
6. Declutter & Donate. There’s nothing more antithetical to Black Friday shopping than de-cluttering and donating or thrifting your stuff. Check out these tips to make it fun, including a 30-day de-clutter challenge.
7. Be a Tourist in Your Own City. Tap into your inner history buff by taking a self-guided audio walking tour of the biggest attractions in your town. Download an app like Autio which houses over 9,000 location-based audio stories.
8. Volunteer. Instead of buying suff, offer your time to those in need this holiday season. Not sure where to start? VolunteerMatch matches volunteers to opportunities in many cities across the US.
9. Plant winter flowers. This might surprise you, but some flowers bloom in the coldest months of the year. Check out this list of the best winter flowers to plant based on which USDA Hardiness zone you live in.