If you have a summer vacation cottage-

[Simba's Mom]

Did you "open it up" this weekend? DH and I were talking last night about how it was such a tradition in New England on Memorial Day weekend for everyone to go to their summer cottages and "open them up" for the summer, mostly at Cape Cod. The traffic going down to the Cape on Memorial Day weekend was almost as bad as the big summer holiday weekends. It was such a tradition to listen to all the talk about what people were going to do, the talk of "where's your place?", the few days before the weekend. Almost as big a tradition as the Boston Marathon! So who's carrying on the tradition?

 

[annegal]

In the South, where I live,many people "open up" their vacation homes on Easter weekend because it is warm .

 

[daughter_of_amid_chaos]

I live on Cape Cod and there are PLENTY of people caring on that tradition this weekend....unfortunately they are everywhere

 

[arminnie]

I have a second home in New Orleans and I think I am going to close it up for the summer - too hot and humid.

Tricia

 

[OhMari]

My parents have a summer home on a Lake in the middle of WI. We live about an hour south. There are a lot of people that only come to their cottages, Memorial Day, 4th of July and close them Labor Day.

My parents pretty much live there one half of the week, and at their other home the other half. Their cottage is actually a very nice ranch home. Some other people I know that have cottages in Wisconsin, have no running water, electricity and they love it.

I know when I talk to people about "their place" I find out it is a dump somewhere up North, but like I said, people are really starting to make these dumps into really nice 2nd homes.

 

[JoyG]

Memorial Day weekend is the beginning of the season in the Hamptons as well...although I don't own a cottage there

I grew up in the Hamptons but on a street with "townies" not where the summer people had their homes.

 

[Beth76]

My parents have a place, but it's open year round. We just got back and there were a ton of people in town for the weekend. We came home early to avoid the traffic. They're closing a lane going out of town tomorrow when everyone's going to be leaving to go home.

 

[C.Ann]

I actually opened my place in the Adirondacks in late March because we had such a mild winter this year.. My DD and her DH moved their travel trailer up here to my extra lot in April..

Most everyone else does open on Memorial Day weekend though and closes up on Labor Day..

I really enjoy being here before everyone else and staying after they leave.. Love the peace and quiet and the beauty of nature..

 

[NMAmy]

My family has a cottage on Lake Michigan. My mom spends pretty much the entire summer up there--it's too isolated to get to in the wintertime.

She went up this weekend--I usually go with her to help her out but she decided on the spur of the moment to go up there. Since my grandparents owned the cottage originally, it's been in the family for over 50 years so we know a lot of people in the very small town where it's located. One of my mom's friends up there had her grandsons over to get the water turned on and an electrician to fix some damage so Mom was able to go up earlier than expected.