Celebrate Spring Break With ‘Gilmore Girls,’ ‘The O.C.’ & More Iconic Episodes
For popular teen dramas and sitcoms of the late ’90s and 2000s, the spring-break-gone-awry plot line remains as timeless and wonderfully cringe-worthy as recounting a blurry night out with old friends.
Beloved protagonists may find themselves in precarious first-time situations they may not have otherwise found themselves in if they didn’t, say, take the cramped van ride to Florida from Yale (Gilmore Girls) or find themselves in a beachy movie-musical at the behest of Frankie Avalon (Sabrina the Teenage Witch). While we love to remember our favorite characters for their triumphs and intrapersonal growth across our comfort series, these episodes offer something simpler to admire in our rewatches: good, old-fashioned, sometimes regrettable spring break antics.
As we officially leave winter behind to welcome spring, we’ve compiled some of the most memorable spring break episodes to celebrate the equinox and, hopefully, serve as a reminder of the good, bad, and cringey you may look back on after your seasonal trip to the beach!
"Girls in Bikinis, Boys Doin' the Twist," Gilmore Girls (Season 4 Episode 17)
After attempting to brave the wintry drag of Connecticut to raise awareness for political prisoners in then Burma, Rory (Alexis Bledel) and Paris (Liza Weil) decide to leave the rain (or “national baptism day,” as Weil delivers in sharp, painfully funny Paris fashion) and pressures of Yale behind for a trip to Florida. Once they emerge from the several-hour, packed van ride and run into old Chilton friends Madeline (Shelly Cole) and Louise (Teal Redmann), the girls push themselves to do all things spring break: flirt to no avail by the pool, mistakenly enter a banana eating contest after taking it literally, and see a randomly featured performance by indie rock band The Shins. This episode, along with the entirety of Rory’s first year of college, remains a fan-favorite for capturing the quintessential awkwardness — and drunken spins on the beach — of a freshman year spring break.
Streaming on Netflix
"Spring Breakdown," Beverly Hills, 90210 (Season 7 Episode 24)
Brandon (Jason Priestley) and Tracy (Jill Novick) visit Jim (James Eckhouse) at his apartment in Hong Kong, where they’ve chosen to spend their spring break. But after catching up, Jim questions Brandon about his true feelings for her— specifically, his true feelings for Kelly. She’s back in Beverly Hills at a party for Jason Lewis at the After Dark, wearing her ex-engagement ring from Brandon on a chain around her neck. The pair spend their spring break continents apart, a sadder version of their vacations looking back on what could have been.
Streaming on Paramount+ and Prime Video
"Beach Blanket Bizarro," Sabrina the Teenage Witch (Season 5 Episode 17)
Sabrina (Melissa Joan Hart) scores her, her friends, and even her new situationship Kevin, a stay at the Surfside Motel in Pelican Cove, Florida, for their long-waited spring break. Her aunts Hilda (Caroline Rhea) and Zelda (Beth Broderick) struggle to trust her on her first unchaperoned vacation, though, and seek to prevent any rash, teenage part of her teenage-witch behavior. With the guest-appearance and assistance of ‘60s beach movie idol Frankie Avalon, the three cast a “good, clean fun” spell on the group. Sabrina and friends soon find themselves sporting squeaky-clean, “neato” Maude updos and doing the twist on the beach, completely upending their plans for a classic 2000s spring break. Also upended is Sabrina and Kevin’s budding relationship. After running into her ex, Harvey (Nate Richert), and watching the sun set with Josh (David Lascher) on the beach, Sabrina questions her future with Kevin, somehow ending up with the same headache and confusion of a spring break from her own era.
Streaming on Hulu, Paramount+ and Prime Video
"Spring Break," Modern Family (Season 6 Episode 18)
Though Modern Family succeeds many of the 2000s teen dramas on our list, the plot of the messy spring break still holds up in reliable sitcom fashion. To take Alex’s (Ariel Winter) mind off pending college acceptances during her spring break, Clair (Julie Bowen) encourages her to accompany Haley (Sarah Hyland) to a music festival. After one drink, Alex is dancing belligerently among the other festival goers, swinging her sweatshirt in the air, and screaming along. Soon after the two are inevitably separated from each other, Haley finds her commanding the attention of a crowd of what Alex calls “6,000 idiots,” to deal with the pain of rejection: She didn’t get into Harvard. When the two finally reunite, Haley gives Alex an earnest, sobering pep-talk, encouraging her through the rest of spring break and into the future: She doesn’t need Harvard to be successful, and she doesn’t need to drink that much at another music festival.
Streaming on Hulu and Peacock
"100 Light Years from Home," Dawson's Creek (Season 5 Episode 19)
If there’s ever an episode exemplary of messy spring break hookups, “100 Lightyears from Home” runs stiff competition, interweaving old and competing loves for the friend group’s vacation. After bidding Dawson (James Van Der Beek) goodbye ahead of her spring break, Joey (Katie Holmes) heads to Florida and gives her address to Charlie (Chad Michael Murray), following her and hoping to meet up. Unbeknownst to her, though, Dawson is on his way to see her on vacation. Audrey (Busy Philipps) reunites with her first love Chris (Chris Hartford), and Pacey (Joshua Jackson) seethes with jealousy at her family’s summer home. Love triangles and a trip to Florida included, this episode has all the hallmarks of a classic Hollywood spring break.
Streaming on Hulu
"Missing Kitty," Arrested Development (Season 1 Episode 18)
“Spring break! It’s my favorite holiday,” says the lovably stupid adult magician Gob Bluth (Will Arnett). Given the Bluth family’s immaturity yet incredible loyalty to each other, choosing a “holiday” mainly meant for teenagers and college students as his favorite is fitting. After vowing a year earlier on the spoof reality documentary Spring Break: Newport Beach to make his family’s yacht disappear, Gob is looking forward to keeping his promise and raising his reputation from amateur to less-amateur magician. Following a hilariously embarrassing dance to Europe’s “The Final Countdown” to hype up the crowd of spring-breakers, Gob reveals the Bluth’s family’s boat to have successfully disappeared — or so he convinces his family for all of five seconds (“Where once there was a yacht, now there is naught,” he triumphantly proclaims). Though most Bluths are past spring-breaking age, this episode has all the poor decisions — including Lucille (Jessica Walter) entering a drinking contest fresh out of rehab — and absurdity of a memorable spring break.
Streaming on Netflix
"The Return of the Nana," The O.C. (Season 2 Episode 21)
For the Cohens (and one Atwood), spring break in Florida doesn’t mean beaches or bars; instead, they head for a retirement community. When Sandy (Peter Gallagher) gets a call that his mom, The Nana (Linda Lavin), is planning to get married, Seth (Adam Brody) and Ryan (Ben McKenzie) head to Miami Beach in a subversive trip to Florida for spring break. Though their vacation starts with shuffleboard, it quickly devolves. Seth gets roped into Music Video Nation’s Spring Break Special dance contest, hoping that Summer (Rachel Bilson) won’t see him with another girl on the broadcast in Orange County and he can leave unscathed by the post spring break shame (though his subsequent fate covered in whipped cream leaves him otherwise).
Streaming on Hulu and Max
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