About six years ago, a few of my girlfriends and I started have “Personal Wellness Days” every few months. These were days designed for relaxation and fun, or what most people would call a “Girls’ Day Out.” The activities varied from brunch to massages to dinners out and they were always great. In more recent times, however, the economy has changed the way we approach our time together. We do more nights in, making appetizers and sharing bottles of wine at someone’s house or apartment. And even though we’re not dropping a bunch of money, the time together is just as good, maybe even better. The point is, a day or night of fun with the gals can be expensive, but it doesn’t have to be. I’ve tried to put together five options for girls’ days (or nights) out that won’t leave you broke.

1. Morning Fun – Start with a morning yoga class at Yoga Central (402 N. Hillcrest). Whether you’re good at yoga or not, it’s bound to be entertaining, and the Saturday morning class is only $7. After you do something nice for your body, you can indulge guilt-free in donuts and coffee at The Donut Whole (1720 E. Douglas). Each girl can order a different flavor and you can break them up into little donut appetizers and sample each one. One donut each plus a cup of coffee (with one free refill) is about $4. Afterwards, head to Abode Home (1330 E. Douglas). You can spend at least an hour here picking out furniture for your dream home and testing out the couches and chairs, and it’s free! End your morning girl date with a trip to the Spice Merchant (1308 E. Douglas) where you can get a half-pound bag of beans for about $7.

2. Dinner, Drinks and (watching people) Dancing – Start off with dinner at Dolci and Joe’s (3425 E. Douglas). The portions are gigantic, so you and a friend can easily split a sandwich or burger and fries for only about $5 each. Afterwards, head down the street to Margarita’s Cantina (3109 E. Douglas). While the drinks aren’t especially cheap, the people watching on the dance floor can’t be beat once the night gets going. Even for a cover charge, the show you’ll get is a bargain, guaranteed to keep you and your friends entertained.

3. Day of Pampering – Body and Soul (353 N. Hillside) offers professional massages, but you can also sign up to be notified about when they have student massage sessions. You can get a 55-minute Swedish massage for $20! After your bargain massages, head to Xenon (3804 W. Douglas) for an inexpensive pedicure, ranging from $19-24. End this day with a tasty natural smoothie from Green Acres (8141 E. 21st St).

4. Baseball and Beer – In the spring, load up your coolers with beer and snacks and head to a Sunday afternoon Shocker baseball game. Really, whether you like baseball doesn’t matter. If you sit behind the outfield, where tickets are only $7, you’ll have plenty of interesting people to watch. After the game, head to Chalet (3030 Penstemon) for $1 beers, an inexpensive meal (most of them are under $10) and a great jukebox.

5. Dinner and Shopping (at Home) – The first part of this is pretty simple. All the girls can pitch in to buy groceries to cook dinner at someone’s house, or you could do a potluck. Everyone brings a bottle of wine to share (or beverage of choice). For the shopping part, have your friends bring bags of clothes that they don’t want. Lay out everything on the floor and then let everyone loose! Your friends can shop from piles of clothes and accessories and head home with a whole new wardrobe for free. I’ve done this with friends on a few occasions, and it is always a good time.

Ladies, what do you do when you want a day of fun with your friends? Share in the comments.

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