Everyone loves a vacation. We dream about them, plan them, save for them, obsess over them, count down to the day they start, and brag about them.

If you are responsible for marketing an attraction or destination, you must use your marketing tools to create desire in nearby households to replace or supplement their late-summer plans with a day at your place.

But how do consumers feel about the day trip? Does that leave-in-the-morning and come-back-that-night excursion to someplace nearby leave them wanting? Is it a mini-vacation to them, or is it a poor substitute for a real vacation that might leave them unsatisfied?

When tourism boards and visitors bureaus start promoting “stay-cations” to their residents, the mini-vacation idea is not universally accepted. Many travelers consider it a vacation only once you are far enough away from home to experience the feeling of being cut off from the normal day-to-day grind. They feel that you need to be far away from the distractions, and the lure of home to have a vacation.

But the day trip is, in fact, a real vacation. Just condensed. It’s all in how you market it. Do it right, and cash in on both avid day-trippers and those on the verge of becoming avid day-trippers.

Your destination can, and should, suggest that a day trip is even better than the traditional week away from work. Here are a few tips for getting your late-summer day trip campaign underway:

• Determine which message will resonate with your late-summer audience the most. There are many “hooks” you can use to convince people they need a day trip to your destination. The thrill of spontaneity, not needing to bring luggage, getting to sleep in your own bed after a wonderful day – these are all great ways to sway those who were planning to stay home to get in the car and go somewhere.
• Widen your net a little. A day trip doesn’t have to take place in a traveler’s backyard. If your attraction or destination is worth a long drive back and forth, travelers will do it.
• Adjust your paid search campaign. Consumers who are looking for something to do for a day use different search terms than those who are searching for a getaway or a vacation. Make sure you have the right words and phrases aimed at the exact geographic locations you are targeting so that you don’t have any waste.
• Throw in a deal. Families – both cash-strapped and wealthy – are looking for deals. Admission to your destination is always extremely reasonable by comparison to a vacation expense. And with unique visits to location-based deal sites like Living Social and Groupon continuing to rise each quarter, you can speak directly to your target audience, and their wallets.
• Don’t assume that people really understand the day trip, and why it makes sense for them. They need to be invited, convinced, and reminded. Again and again.