Parade Day has once again come and gone, and it’s pretty easy to be sad when you think about the fact that you can’t wake up with the intention of partying all day long. Let’s face it, day drinking is a fun part of the college experience, and without regular football tailgates, we’re left with four days to really “darty” as a collective community: Parade Day, Santacon, Spring Fling and Bar Crawl. Don’t let the confines of the Triple Cities keep you from partying from sunup to sundown. Find a friend and road trip over to one of these close locales, and be the ultimate party crasher — just make sure you rent a motel or stay with a friend, don’t drive home. Sure, these can’t beat the revelry that is a Binghamton day-drink, but that’s no excuse for staying home.
Chill-a-bration
It’s definitely not the wild experience that is Parade Day, but with endless chili and special mug deals, you can’t really go wrong. Located in Cortland, New York, it’s been going on for nine years, so don’t miss out on the 10th. Cortland is only 45 minutes away, so you don’t need to leave a day before and if you get a designated driver, you can be back in time to drunkly eat your leftovers and watch “Jeopardy!” It’s four hours, which is long enough to have fun, but not long enough to do anything you’ll regret.
Culture Shock
This SUNY Purchase event features multiple bands on multiple stages over the course of two days, so if if you’ve ever wanted a 24-hour Spring Fling, this is the move. Culture Shock has over 40 acts in a wide variety of genres, so if your friend wants to hear an indie band but you want to listen to a DJ, there won’t be much of an issue. The event is held in late April and has featured comedians like Chris Gethard and jazz group BadBadNotGood, so sure, it’s three hours away, but it’s basically a free, modest music festival.
Lark Fest
Held on Albany’s Lark Street, this day-long street festival has everything you could want from music to food to magicians to crafts. If you miss the crowds, then attend for the tens of thousands of people who come to walk around the closed-off areas. It’s known as the “largest one-day street festival in New York.” So you won’t run out things to do. And if for some reason you do, then hit the bars.
Kendall Day
This party at Ithaca College is where to go if you’re looking for bottles being thrown and somewhat rowdy, school-is-almost-over behavior. Last year cops broke up the party at 2 p.m., but this day is early in May, so you might as well get the morning of sunshine in. Besides, once the revelry has been busted, you can experience Ithaca’s bars and compare them to what we have on State Street.