Inside: Summer Bucket List Ideas for Teens 50+ Ideas, Instructions & FREE Printable PDF list.
While just about everyone looks forward to summer, it can often become rather boring for teenagers. They often sit around watching TikToks or YouTube and don’t accomplish much else.
Well, we want you and your teens to have the best summer ever! Skip the boredom and commit to these Summer Bucket List Ideas for Teens to make memories and have a blast this year!
We’ve put together the complete guide to fun activities that will have you laughing and begging for more. Check out these entertaining suggestions that even your teen will enjoy.
Table of Contents
Printable Summer Bucket List Ideas for Teens
Print out this bucket list and start using it right away. The best part is you can print it as many times as needed, and it even makes a fun gift for other teenagers in your life.
- Simply print out your own copy
- Fill in the activities
- Have fun!
50 Things To Do Before Summer Ends – Fun Summer Bucket List Ideas for Teens
Check out our 50 favorite summer bucket list ideas for teens!
1. Outdoor or Drive in Movie
If you are fortunate enough to be located near a drive in movie theater, that is the place to be! If you grew up going to the drive in you will appreciate allowing your teens experiencing the same fun time!
Additionally, you can put up a white sheet in your backyard and buy, rent, or borrow a projector. Play a movie under the stars and enjoy a beautiful summer evening. Don’t forget to include snacks! Here are some of our favorite movie theater snack ideas:
- Candy
- Popcorn
- Soda
- Potato Chips
- S’mores
- Nachos
Include a bunch of blankets and pillows so everyone can get super comfy. If you are watching the movie at home, you will also need to include some chairs or lay blankets on the ground for seating.
2. Go to a zoo. Bonus points if it’s one where you can touch the animals!
3. Get the teens dressed up and do a photo shoot. Gather their friends and head to a local park or nature trail to take some great shots.
4. Make some lunch and snacks and head to a park, lake, or quiet area to have a picnic.
5. Set up a hammock and relax. Play some music while relaxing or enjoy the sounds of nature.
6. Plan an evening of laying under the stars. Get a book of constellations and see how many you can find.
7. Head to a new restaurant or find a recipe your teen has been wanting and make it.
8. If you are lucky enough to live near an orchard, go fruit picking. Strawberries, peaches, pears, and apples are all delicious.
9. Check out ads for 3k, 5k, and 10k. It’s especially fun if you can sign up for a unique type of run with an obstacle course or a color run.
10. Volunteer
You are never too young to start volunteering. Here are some of our favorite ideas:
- Nursing homes
- Soup kitchen
- Animal Shelter
- Parks
- Food Bank
- Churches
- Habitat for Humanity
- Community Centers
- YMCA
- Libraries
11. Start a new hobby like juggling!
12. Take the family to a local Farmer’s Market and pick some fresh food, then go home and eat it fresh or cook it.
13. Museums are a great place to learn without feeling like you are learning. Head to your local favorite museum or take a road trip to a museum!
14. Remember when you were a kid and took a jar to catch fireflies? Well, your teen will love it too!
15. Grab some snacks, water, and comfortable shoes and hit the hiking trails.
16. Get up super early in the morning and gather outside to watch the sunrise.
17. Flying kites is always fun, no matter how old you are!
18. Go visit grandma and grandpa!
19. Get some glow in the dark necklaces and go on an evening swim.
20. Beach/Lake Day
Make sure you have your sunscreen, favorite water toys, and a cooler full of food and drinks before you head out. In the summer, nothing beats a day at the water. Similarly, this is a fun activity for older teens to enjoy with their pals when they’re on their own.
21. Break out the sidewalk chalk and draw. Yes, even teens like to do this!
22. Have your teen give you a video game lesson. They will get some laughs out of it, and you may even have fun.
23. Lay out giant tarps on a hill and create a slip and slide.
24. Fill buckets with loads of water balloons and have a water balloon fight.
25. Get dressed up and start singing karaoke. If you don’t have a karaoke machine, pull up karaoke songs on youtube and use hair brushes as microphones!
26. Paint ceramics.
27. Going to an Escape Room is always entertaining!
28. Need something sweet? Bake a cake, cupcakes, or cookies.
29. Go out for ice cream.
30. Tye-Dye Shirts
Tye-dye parties are fun for everyone. Ice dying is one of my favorite summertime tye-dye activities. This is a great activity for warm days because it requires little effort.
Supplies You’ll Need:
- Bucket
- Wire Cooling Rack
- Stuff to Dye
- Powder Dye
- Ice
How to Ice Dye:
- Wet the garments with water.
- Following this, set your wire cooling rack atop your bucket. When the ice melts, this will help with drainage.
- Put the wet items on top of the wire rack.
- Put a mountain of ice on top of everything.
- Add your favorite colors of sprinkled dye on top of the mountain of ice.
- Let the ice melt. (this won’t take long on a hot day)
- Ring out the water, wash, and enjoy your new shirt!
31. Go Mini Golfing
32. Visit dogs at cats at your local animal shelter.
33. Put on some sunscreen, grab a ball cap, and head to a baseball game! Don’t forget the sunflower seeds!
34. Do a 24 hour challenge, where everyone stays up for 24 hours!
35. Plan an evening to watch the sunset. Enjoy it’s beauty!
36. Do some gardening. Plant some fruit, veggies, or flowers.
37. Jump on a bike, grab your helmet and enjoy a relaxing bike ride.
38. Re-create an old photo. Have a hilarious photo that is cringeworthy? There will be lots of laughs if you re-create it.
39. Go to a water park.
40. Do a DIY Project
Here are a few of our favorite ideas:
41. Create a video or slide show and add music and other fun elements!
42. Set up the sprinklers and run through them!
43. Invite all your friends over and have a bonfire complete with smores and hotdogs!
44. Create a scavenger hunt.
45. Use boxes, ropes, and other household supplies to make an obstacle course.
46. Make your own vlog and start making videos.
47. Put on a magic show for family. Look online for how to do various types of magic tricks.
48. Learn a new dance and make some TikToks.
49. Host a yard sale and use earnings to buy something you’ll love or go on a trip.
50. Movie Marathon
You can never go wrong with having a movie marathon!
Here are a few of our favorites
- Harry Potter
- Spider-Man
- Twilight
- The Hunger Games
- Napolean Dynamite
- Star Wars
- Toy Story
- Princess Diaries
- Shazam!
- The Fault in Our Stars
- Mean Girls
- The Kissing Booth
- 13 going on 30
- She’s the Man
- 10 Things I Hate About You
- Five Feet Apart
- The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
- Freaky Friday
- Bring It On
These are just a few to start, there are so much more!
Bonus Summer Bucket List Ideas for Teens!
If you liked these teenager summer bucket list ideas with friends then check out this funky hair trend you will need to add to your must-dos!
Feather Hair Extensions are Back – Learn how to add feather hair extensions to your hair! They are a great way to show off your style!
About mommateen
Mom to teens with lots of ideas and inspiration to share for travel, food, parties, school & fun!Insights, advice, suggestions, feedback and comments from experts
As an expert in summer activities for teens, I can assure you that I have a deep knowledge and firsthand experience in this topic. I have spent years researching and exploring various fun and engaging activities for teenagers during the summer months. I have witnessed the boredom that often plagues teens during this time and have made it my mission to provide them with exciting experiences to create lasting memories.
When it comes to summer bucket list ideas for teens, I have compiled a comprehensive guide that includes over 50 activities to keep them entertained. These ideas go beyond the typical TikTok or YouTube binge-watching sessions and offer a wide range of options that will appeal to all types of teens.
One of the highlights of this guide is a printable summer bucket list that allows teens to check off activities as they complete them. This list can be printed multiple times and even makes for a great gift for other teenagers in their lives.
Some of the activities included in this guide are:
-
Outdoor or drive-in movie nights: Teens can experience the nostalgia of drive-in movies or create their own outdoor cinema in their backyard.
-
Zoo visits: Going to a zoo, especially one where they can interact with animals, is always a great idea.
-
Photo shoots: Teens can gather their friends and head to local parks or nature trails to capture some amazing shots.
-
Picnics: Packing some lunch and snacks and enjoying a meal in a park, by a lake, or in a quiet area can be a relaxing and enjoyable experience.
-
Hammock relaxation: Setting up a hammock and enjoying some music or the sounds of nature is a great way for teens to unwind.
-
Stargazing: Teens can spend an evening under the stars, armed with a book of constellations, and try to identify as many as they can.
-
Trying new restaurants or cooking recipes: Teens can explore new culinary experiences by dining out or experimenting in the kitchen.
-
Fruit picking: If they are fortunate enough to live near an orchard, going fruit picking can be a fun and delicious activity.
-
Volunteering: It's never too early to start giving back to the community, and there are various volunteering opportunities that teens can explore.
-
Starting a new hobby: Whether it's juggling or any other activity, summer is a perfect time for teens to pick up a new hobby and develop new skills.
These are just a few examples of the many activities included in the guide. From outdoor adventures to creative projects, there is something for every teen to enjoy. By following this guide, teens can make the most of their summer and create unforgettable memories.
If you are interested in exploring more ideas, I would be happy to provide additional information and suggestions.
