Brittany Eckley/ The Towerlight

Staying in your room

OK, so the Bahamas and Key West are all really nice places. But they aren’t nearly as nice as your room. Why go out and get a suntan when there is a bed to sleep in?

If there’s a solid week of Spring Break, then why not spend it relaxing? If you’ve worked for half the semester, why would you want to go and drink your brains out, only to come back to school tired again?

Here’s a much better idea:

First of all, you’re going to need a large stack of comic books. This means almost everything so far from DC’s New 52. Then, you’re going to need a fully-charged Nintendo DS, and several Pokémon games.

This means you’ll need either SoulSilver or HeartGold, White or Black, White 2 or Black 2 and Pearl or Diamond.

That’ll make up at least three or four days of activities.

You’re also going to need food. Lots of food. And nothing that takes effort, it has to be pretty much all microwave. HotPockets, Lean Cuisine and Bagel Bites are all solid options in this department.

Then, most importantly, are the movies. The best choice here is the Dark Knight trilogy. Then, you can sit in your room all break and re-watch “The Dark Knight Rises” and practice your Bane voice. Then, when you come back to Towson you can impress all of your professors with your eloquent speech.

“Oh, you think darkness is your ally. But you merely adopted the dark; I was born in it, moulded by it. I didn’t see the light until I was already a man, by then it was nothing to me but BLINDING.”

Spending time with family

The theme for Spring Break this year at Towson seems to be Panama City Beach. However, for those who aren’t 21 or just cannot go to a week-long rage on the beach for whatever reason, here’s a lovely alternative: go visit your friends and family!

It’s always a good time whenever you have time to catch up with your parents, relatives who live out of state, and catch up with friends from high school.

One of the best things to do with your family, if you live in the D.C., Maryland, Virginia area, is to visit the cherry blossoms in our nation’s capital with your family. Although it can get a little boring walking around all afternoon, it’s always worth it to get quality time with your loved ones. The cherry blossoms are really pretty as well. The festivities this season begin March 20th.

If you want to catch up with friends from high school but they’re not on break at the same time, go visit them at their schools. Getting the chance to get away from Towson and see what other campuses look like is always neat, and a change in nightlife scenery from uptown and your typical Donnybrook/Cardiff party is more than welcomed.

Diving into schoolwork

Spring break is five days of opportunities to bring in mad cash and catch up on schoolwork. You could use this time to get ahead on that paper you know is due soon or study all those things you can’t manage to find time to when classes are in session. After all, the early bird catches the worm. So go get it! Be the productive one and add some hours at your job so you have a little extra cash when classes are back and you really need that beer. And if you don’t have a job already, then start applying. And you can still make money middle-school style baby-sitting and watching people’s dogs. Check out Care.com to rake in that cash. The more you do during break the more you can relax and spend money when classes start back up.

Go skiing or snowboarding

For those people who are too pale for the beach or just looking for a more adventurous spring break, head to the mountains. Spring break is the last opportunity to shred the slopes, so take advantage of it before the weather turns warm on the east coast.

Make it a week-long adventure by travelling up to Vermont or Massachusetts. Vermont offers several mountains within a short distance of each other, including Stratton Mountain, Bromley Mountain, Killington Ski Resort and Okemo Mountain Resort. By looking online ahead of time, you’ll find discounted lift tickets to save yourself some money. Okemo also offers cheap lift tickets to students by showing your OneCard.

Another option is to travel out west where ski season can last through most of spring. Resorts such as the Canyons Resort in Utah, Vail Mountain in Colorado and Mammoth Mountain in California offer unique experience from east coast skiing. When skiing out west, the mountains are notoriously bigger, steeper and of course, less icy.

However, skiing out west most likely involves taking an airplane. Check to see if you or your parents have some frequent flyer miles, which could save you money. Also, websites such as studentuniverse.com offer discounted flights for college students.

You’ll have all summer to spend relaxing on the beach getting your tan on. Take advantage of the snow while you can and make one last trip to the mountains, even if it’s just a day trip to Liberty Mountain in Fairfield, Pa.

Find a cruise

If you’re tired of all beaches all the time and are looking for an out-of-the-box spring break experience, try booking a cruise.

Though Alaska isn’t the first destination many think of when vacation time rolls around, Alaska boasts some of the most beautiful landscapes—and cruises are a great way to enjoy them without having to face the “last frontier” hands-on.

Most major cruise lines offer Alaskan cruises, allowing you to enjoy all the luxury of a top-notch cruise with the added adventure and stunning sights that the Alaskan wilderness provides.

Cruise companies such as Carnival and Norwegian offer plenty of tour options so you can tailor your trip to include the most appealing aspects of the abundant state, from whale watching and wildlife like seals and eagles, to a tour of the glaciers that line Alaska’s coast.

In case you want to expand your trip to include inland adventures as well, Royal Caribbean offers 21 choices of Alaska Cruisetour packages from 10 to 14 nights that combine a cruise vacation with land tours.

Though cruises require a plane trip to their departing locations, if you’re looking for an exhilarating vacation that you will surely never forget, don’t count out the “last frontier,” you might just discover the vacation of a lifetime.

If you’re looking for an exciting cruise that doesn’t require traveling so far from home, New York City is the perfect place for night party cruises that allow you to enjoy the city’s skyline, as well as entertainment and socialization with others looking for a night of fun.

These night cruises also won’t break the bank, as companies like City Lights Cruises offer options ranging from just $70 to $95.

If you want to avoid the beach scene, a cruise is a great option to get away for your spring break, whether you’re looking for an adventurous excursion or just a night out on the water.

Traveling cross country and abroad

For spring breakers looking to change up their daily scenery, one option is to travel abroad. Whether it be by car, plane, train, or boat, seeing fresh faces and new sights may be just the rejuvenation a hard working college student is looking for.

For those low on funds, or with a fear of flying, a road trip within the borders of the United States or even to Canada can be a great bonding experience. Grabbing one or two best friends, filling up your car’s gas tank, munching out on not-so healthy snacks, and hitting the open road can be a great escape from the daily frustrations of school or work.

For those open to spending more than a couple hours with their legs cramped in the backseat, North to Canada or West to California, Colorado, Texas, or essentially anywhere your heart desires is a possibility. There are many incredible sights like The Grand Canyon, Yosemite National Park, The Great Lakes, or even one of the numerous beaches in California. With a car, a map, and some close friends the possibilities for fun are endless.

For the more adventurous spirit, overseas travel can be an amazing experience to explore new cultures and make friends in virtually any country in the world. There are numerous companies who work to find affordable ways for students to travel internationally. Some offer the travel experiences as simply a vacation, others with some educational aspects involved. Then of course there is always the possibility of volunteering in developing countries.

Some of these companies are even affiliated with scholarship programs that allow for the student to travel in a way that is less expensive than if they were to plan the trip on their own. However, regardless of whether you plan your trip through a company or on your own, it is certain to be a life-changing experience that will awaken you to the lifestyles of people all over the country and the world.