16 Fun Things To Do in Lockdown When Bored!

Auckland is (still) in lockdown, but that doesn’t mean you’re destined to sit on the couch until we get back to ‘normal’. With a little bit of creativity and motivation, there are actually plenty of things to do to keep you and your family busy and entertained from the confines of your neighbourhood.

There is no way you will be bored by tackling these activities in your downtime during a lockdown.

Here is our list of fun things to do when you’re bored in lockdown in Auckland!

So, here we go, these are my top 10 things you can do in a lockdown:

1. Movie Marathon

If there’s one sure-fire way to entertain yourself for hours on end, it’s by having a movie marathon! Almost every movie ever made is at our fingertips these days with Netflix, Apple TV, Amazon Prime and so on. So let’s make the most of this opportunity to watch all of those movies you’ve been meaning to watch for years!

Are there any classics that you simply haven’t gotten around to watching? What about those movies that your movie buff friend always recommends? If you find yourself in lockdown on a grey and rainy day this is perhaps one of the best things to do!

Why not create a fort in the lounge, make some popcorn and start binge-watching all of the best movies ever made?

If movies don’t really do it for you, then why not increase your knowledge by watching documentaries and docu series instead? There are so many amazing documentaries available to watch on Netflix and YouTube!

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2. Zoom Quiz

Are you and your friends bored and tired of being separated? Why not organise a zoom quiz night competition. You can be the quiz master or one of your friends can do this too. You could decide to have the questions be about general knowledge or make them a bit more personal to your circle of friends.

Grab some drinks and snacks and have a great quiz night with your mates!

3. Get Stuck in the Garden

For some people, gardening might not be so fun! But for those of us with a green thumb, or those wanting to start a new gardening hobby, now is the perfect time to get in the garden!

Spring is upon us, so now is the perfect time to get stuck into the garden and clear out all weeds, sticks and debris from winter to give your plants the perfect place to flourish for the spring! When the lockdown opens up, you can get a professional gardener near you to come help out in ensuring they thrive.

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4. Start a New Project

Have you been meaning to set up a fire pit since last year? Maybe you’ve been wanting to build new garden beds? Perhaps set up a sleepout in the garden?

Many of us have grand ideas for at home and DIY projects that we want to get stuck into but never seem to find the time in our busy lives. Well, guess what? The time has come!

With copious amounts of time on your hands, keep busy by getting stuck into one of those projects.

If you haven’t already got the supplies you need, you may need to wait until we are into level 3 lockdown to obtain them (but in Auckland in level 4, we can shop online from stores around the country that are in level 3).

If you’re having trouble obtaining supplies, you can at least thoroughly plan your project so that when you are able to get your hands on what you need, you can go full steam ahead!

5. Uplevel your Education

Online education has taken off in a major way, especially after the pandemic! That means whatever you have been curious about learning, whether it is learning a new language, physics, social media skills, yoga, law or anything else you can think of, you can learn it online!

There are plenty of free courses you can pick up or you could decide to invest in a course (and in yourself!).

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6. Get Creative

When we are really bored and stuck in lockdown, one of the best ways to cope with feelings of stagnancy and boredom is to get the creative juices flowing!

There are so many ways you can be creative from the things you already have at home. Plus basic art supplies can be purchased from the supermarket.

Here are some creative project ideas:

• Painting and sketching

• Creating clay sculptures

• Making candles

• Macrame

• Knitting

• Makeup makeovers

• Creating dream catchers

The list goes on… Creativity and imagination are endless and lockdown is a great way to really tune into and nourish your creativity.

7. Start a Blog or Podcast

Have you been thinking about starting your own blog or podcast for years? Well if so, now is the time! Whatever your hobby or passion is that you want to blog about, there are other people somewhere in the world who want to read or hear about it!

Starting a blog and podcast is relatively easy and inexpensive and you’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain!

This is a great way to activate your passions and find a sense of purpose and motivation during a challenging time in history. Your point of view will not only help others, but you never know where it will take you in the future. Take a deep breath and just do it!

8. Game Night

One of the best things to do during lockdown to keep the whole family entertained (and also connected!) is to have a family games night. Most of us have games lying around the house or you can make your very own games. Some of our favourites are any kind of card game (e.g. Uno or President), Monopoly, Charades, Pictionary. You could even go on a treasure hunt, play hide and seek or attempt to complete a puzzle! You can also buy a trampoline to ensure hours of fun in your backyard but ensure the trampoline assembly is done properly to avoid injuries.

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9. Get Busy in the Kitchen

One of the only things we can do during lockdown is going to the supermarket! So take this time to research some recipes online (we love Pinterest for this!), stock up on ingredients and start cooking! Try new dishes you’ve never done before, different cuisines and also challenging recipes you never normally have time for!

This is a great way to level up your cooking skills (to impress your friends later!), increase your repertoire of recipes and just have fun.

10. Travel Virtually with YouTube

Lucky for us, there is hours and hours of high-quality drone footage from all around the world available to view on YouTube. Even though we can’t really go anywhere we can still enjoy the beauty of the world from our couch.

These videos are usually reasonably long, feature beautiful imagery and relaxing music. This is the perfect way to spend an afternoon when you’re just sick of Netflix and normal TV!

Plus doing this will help you craft an epic travel bucket list for when we can travel internationally again.

To find these videos, all you need to do is search ‘virtual drone travel’ on YouTube.

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11. Explore the Streets & Walkways in your Neighbourhood

Another one of the few things we can do during lockdown is exercise in our neighbourhood! So now is the perfect time to get outside and start exploring. When we are stuck in our everyday routine, we usually walk and drive the same way. Now is the perfect opportunity to explore more of your neighbourhood’s streets and walkways that you never have before!

You may find some treasures! Plus you’ll be keeping yourself active and healthy while you’re doing it.

12. Spring Clean Your Home

Spring cleaning is also questionably fun. But spring cleaning will certainly banish your boredom and make you feel fresh, organised and get your heart pumping!

This is the perfect time of year to give your home a deep clean and get ready for a fresh start in spring. Spring cleaning involves:

• Decluttering your space

• Dusting everywhere, even in the hard to reach nooks and crannies (banish those cobwebs!)

• Clean the inside of your appliances like the oven and fridge

• Clean the windows and window sills, inside and outside

• Clean the inside of shelves and drawers

• Vacuum furniture

• Clean soap scum off the bathroom

That should keep you very busy! Also rest assured that any trash that you have managed to collect can be properly disposed of by removal experts that can be found via ezy peazy.

13. Start a New Business

It might seem crazy to you to start a new business during a time of such economic uncertainty! But it is during times like these that the next wave of incredible businesses are born! During a lockdown, you have so much more time to think of new business ideas and you also have a whole new host of problems to solve in the world, that we are facing in this new post-pandemic normal.

You may have an amazing business idea already that you simply haven’t had the time or courage to get off the ground. Take this golden opportunity to take the leap of faith in starting your very own business!

This might sound silly but this lockdown gives you enough time and boredom to take on a new project. Why not think of a business idea and work on it? Maybe by the time you get out of lockdown, you could find potential investors or pitch to future clients. Let’s get productive!

14. Get Busy Planning for the Future

Has the COVID situation and lockdown halted your life and made you feel lost and stuck? Seize this opportunity to create some big plans for your future. Take your power back and create a plan to get you excited! We all need something to look forward to.

Whether you want to plan your next holiday, create a business plan, a savings plan, a fitness plan or any other kind of plan you get to think of, in the famous words of Nike, just do it!

This will give you purpose, motivation and leave you excited for the future!

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15. Take a Digital Detox

During lockdown, it can feel like the ONLY thing we do is stare at screens. We work on screens, we learn on-screen, we socialise on screens and we entertain ourselves on screens. This can get very tedious and our brains simply need a break from all of that stimulation when we are doing it constantly!

Carve out a day or two once a week to just turn off all your devices. This may sound mad, like what are you supposed to do? There are so many things when you actually put your mind to it!

You can:

• Read books

• Paint or draw

• Go for very long walks

• Meditate

• Practice yoga

• Run a bath

• Garden

• Cook a meal for your family

• Play games

  
  

16. Connect with Old Friends

Do you have friendships or relationships that you have been neglecting due to lack of time?

Let lockdown give you the time and energy to reach out to people you may have lost touch with or people you’ve been meaning to catch up with. Perhaps you have voice notes you never managed to reply to? Or unanswered messages or emails.

Take this precious time to reconnect with friends and create a sense of connection that you may find yourself missing during lockdown.

There you have 16 fun things to do in lockdown to combat boredom! It may feel like there’s nothing to do, but we are so lucky to have so many fun things to keep us connected, busy, active and healthy during a lockdown, sometimes you just need to think outside the box!