I thought I'd write a blog about some of the things I like to do best that cost almost nothing. They are often more fun than things that cost money like movies, bars, or clubs.
Going to the library. Hours of entertainment for free, what more can you ask? Not only is it a good deal, but it might make you a better person. Instead of subscribing to magazine, a couple times a month I just take a trip over to the library and read my favorite periodicals and pick a good book up on the way out.
Going to the beach. Good exercise if you want to go swimming or walking down the beach, or you can lay in the sun and read that book you just got from the library.
Go to park. A lot of cities are building exercise equipment into their parks so you can save money on a gym. The workouts are pretty good, you can jog around the park for cardio then use pull up, push up bars, etc... My daughter loves the play areas too, and if you have some friends you can usually get a volley ball game going with just an ID lent to the park.
Video Games. If you buy all your video games on Ebay and then sell them right after you finish them they cost virtually nothing. As long as you don't wait for the demand/cost of the game to go down too far before you sell it, you can usually sell it for close to what you bought for it, sometimes even more if you are lucky. It helps to buy older games that prices have stabilized more with. On a cost per hour basis video games are some of the cheapest entertainment you can have. Let's say you buy Skyrim for $60.00 brand new, with at least 100 hours of game play that's only $.59 per hour of entertainment vs about $5.00 an hour for a movie. If you sell it back afterwards that amount goes down significantly. Ebay is like a library for video games where you can just check one out when you return the last.
Nature trails. Washington state has a huge amount of these, but most cities have some near by. Biking or walking down them is great exercise and gives you a lot of time to think, or listen to books on mp3.
Museums, many museums will have certain days they are free or a reduced price. You probably haven't been to one since you were a kid, but as an adult you will appreciate it much more than you did back then. A quick search on the web will tell you what you have in your area and what days are free/discounted.
Wine Tastings. You can often buy into them for 5 or 10 bucks, and frequently meet some interesting people while you drink good wine. Some tasting's I've been to even give you a free glass which is a great way to stock your cabinet for company. If you don't have any wineries near you, most good wine shops have them weekly.
Art Galleries. If you live by a downtown area with a lot of art galleries, they'll often have a night where they are all open late and people go from gallery to gallery. You usually get some free wine or champagne too. If you do decide to purchase any of the art, this will quickly not longer be cheap entertainment, but likely very very expensive entertainment.