Top 10 Best Spring Break Episodes

Many teens dream of their first college spring break being full of booze, boys, and bikinis. Even witches want to have a little fun, and Sabrina Spellman is looking forward to leaving her responsibilities behind and letting loose. But her aunts, Zelda and Hilda, don’t want her to have a wild vacation, so they enlist Frankie Avalon to use a little bit of magic to turn Sabrina’s modern-day fantasy into a sugary sweet 1960s version of the typical college vacation where she can’t get into any trouble. Huh, maybe it’s just a coincidence, but this episode might be the predecessor to “Teen Beach Movie.”

When you already live in California, heading to the beach doesn’t always feel like a novel way to spend your spring vacation. In the seventh season of “Beverly Hills, 90210,” Brandon takes Tracy to Hong Kong to visit his dad, Jim, who moved there for work. While he’s there, Jim grills him on his feelings about Kelly, trying to get him to be honest about where his emotions are at. The episode also has an appearance from the Barenaked Ladies, which adds to the perfectly ‘90s atmosphere. Talk about a nostalgia trip.

And you thought spring break was only for spring chickens - think again! In this season five episode of “The Goldbergs,” Barry, Erica, Johnny, and Carla all head to Florida together to take part in the action. Erica and Barry want to party, but staying at Al’s condo isn’t exactly the atmosphere they were going for. Surrounded by the elderly and forced to wear ridiculous-looking bathing caps, they’ve got to find a way out. They try to make their own fun and realize that they won’t manage it by following the rules.

Alex is ready to spend her spring break waiting to see whether she’s been accepted into Harvard, but her mom insists that she relax and have a little fun. Since Haley is going to a music festival, Claire suggests that Alex tag along. Of course, under Haley’s watch, Alex gets quite intoxicated, but her behavior suggests that something else might be up too. Haley finds out that Alex was rejected from Harvard, which leads to a heartwarming moment between the two sisters... despite the fact that they’re in a field full of idiots.

The season one finale of “Greek” takes place in Myrtle Beach where our favorite Cyprus-Rhodes University students are on spring break. Casey is trying to finally let loose after leaving the burden of ZBZ presidency behind her. A common trope in spring break episodes is that the characters have high hopes for their big vacation and then everything goes wrong, which is exactly how it plays out here. Rebecca’s trip is especially awful, finding out that her politician dad was involved in a prostitution ring. Now that’s definitely worse than your average beach vacation!

Let’s just say, Paris and Rory aren’t exactly the spring break type. They don’t like to party at Yale, so traveling to Florida for spring break was probably a miscalculation on their part. They have a chance encounter with Madeline and Louise (because of course, they’re there) who try to teach them how to really enjoy themselves. While they put in their best efforts, in the end, they’re definitely ready to go home. And that drunken phone call to Dean might just have been the start of his affair with Rory...

“Arrested Development” is known for its running jokes that span multiple seasons, and one of the most hilarious and outlandish ones originated in this spring break themed episode. When Kitty returns to work from medical leave, she reveals that she was actually getting breast implants, and then declares that she’ll need even more time off for spring break. When Michael tries to fire her, she says “say goodbye to these!” (in reference to her newly enhanced breasts) and tries to blackmail him. Oh, and Gob manages to make the family yacht disappear.

Is it really spring break if it takes place in Vermont? Dawson and the gang head to his aunt’s place for their spring break and with everyone cooped up in a house together, you know sparks are going to fly. There had obviously been something going on between Pacey and Joey already, but it finally came to a head in the episode "Stolen Kisses,” which is considered by fans to be the marker of the beginning of their more official relationship. Of course, Dawson is trying to get closer with Joey himself, which makes for plenty of drama.

Spring Break! Woohoo! Ross’s much younger girlfriend Elizabeth is heading south for spring break, and after talking to his buddies, he starts to fear what her intentions are for the vacation. When he finds the skimpy swimwear she’s bringing, his paranoia only gets worse. The only way Ross can figure out to keep watch over her is to accompany her on the trip, which results in him ending up on MTV looking absolutely ridiculous. In retrospect, Ross’s behavior is a bit over-the-top, but hey, that’s the Ross we know and love.


Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

"The Vacation Solution"
“The Big Bang Theory” (2007-19)

"And the Spring Break"
“2 Broke Girls” (2011-17)

“The O.C.” already takes place in California (obviously) but in this season two episode, Seth and Ryan head to the other coast in order to visit Sandy’s mom, AKA the Nana. Seth is in his element among the elderly, which provides plenty of opportunity for hilarity. But he finds himself as a fish out of water when he ends up having to lick whipped cream off a girl for a contest, with Summer watching from back in Orange County.