Have you had enough dinner-and-drinks dates to last you a lifetime? Have you been with your significant other for a while and have trouble coming up with new date ideas? Are you tired of having first dates in a coffee shop? Well, never fear. We've got some fresh ideas for your next date.
Whether it's a first or 100th date, whether you've been together a long time or you just met on Hinge, these date ideas will bring the excitement (and the romance). Take a look, and feel free to share any ideas of your own in the comments!
1. Check out a museum.
2. Draw portraits of each other, regardless of your artistic abilities.
Keep your portraits secret while you work on them, then do a grand reveal.
3. Spend a couple of hours showing each other your favorite videos on the internet.
4. Park up at a drive-in movie.
5. Make individual pizzas with whatever toppings you want and decide whose is better.
6. Check into a local hotel with a pool for a local mini vacation.
7. Try your hand at crafting some cocktails.
8. Go dog-watching in a nearby park.
People-watching is also fun, but dogs are cuter! Plus, you can compare your favorite breeds. Alternatively, check out the birds during a stroll in the park and see which ones you can identify!
9. Pick out your favorite cheeses and make your own custom charcuterie boards.
Or try a TikTok-approved butter board for a more cost-effective option. Add slices of warm bread for a savory treat! Pair with grapes, wine, and other small-bite snacks.
10. Bust out the brushes for a night of paint and sip.
11. Grab your hiking boots and hit the trails.
A date that combines romance and a workout? Surely, it doesn't get any better than that. Make sure to pack a few snacks!
12. Play MASH with each other and find out where you're going to live one day.
Hopefully you won't end up in a shack with eight kids.
13. Learn how to make a new dish together.
14. Look after a Tamagotchi for as long as possible without it dying.
"Okay, you can have him on Monday to Wednesday, I'll have him Wednesday to Friday, and then we share on weekends."
15. Spend a nice afternoon skating or biking.
16. Work on your short game with some mini golf.
17. Go bowling!
18. Play Twister together.
19. Visit a botanical garden.
20. Decorate a batch of cookies together.
Pick up the ingredients to make sugar cookies, or buy a pre-made batch at the store, and decorate to your hearts desire!
21. Start potting plants together.
Buy seeds, soil, and egg cartons or pots to set up your dream home garden!
22. Sing your hearts out during a night of at-home karaoke.
23. Visit a psychic or tarot card reader.
Have a fun and lighthearted experience getting readings together, if you're up for the dare! Additionally, try getting your aura photographed!
24. Have a Nerf gun battle.
Set up an obstacle course at home or in a park and have a playful Nerf gun battle.
25. Test your knowledge with a good old-fashioned trivia night.
26. Visit an escape room.
This fun activity locks you into a room (usually themed), and you and your partner must work together to find clues and escape!
27. Break out the beer mugs and do your own tasting of some local brews.
If mocktails are more up your alley, try a coffee flight or coffee shop crawl!
28. Go back to school (but just for the day).
29. Stream a virtual concert from the comfort of your couch.
Beyoncé's Homecoming, anyone?
30. Indulge in an ice cream sundae bar with all of the best toppings.
31. Watch an episode of your favorite nostalgic Nickelodeon show.
32. Get tickets to a show at the planetarium.
Brush up on your space facts beforehand if you really want to impress your date.
33. Make a scrapbook of your favorite memories.
Or, if you're not the crafty type, design a photo book together and send it off to get printed professionally.
34. Hit the arcades.
35. Tour a local historic site.
Pick one near you, or roadtrip to one a few hours away!
36. Create a scavenger hunt around your house (or your neighborhood).
Make it as easy or as difficult as you'd like, and make sure to include a reward!
37. Dine in with a living room picnic.
38. Test your chess skills and get a game going against each other.
39. Start planning your next vacation.
40. Read each other Goosebumps books in the dark.
41. Volunteer together.
While you're saving, why not give something back, too? Food banks, shelters, and older people's charities are all great places to start.
42. Adopt a dog for a day.
See if any animal shelters in your area participate in Doggy Day Out, which gives community members the chance to take local shelter dogs on day outings — helping the dogs to expend extra energy and deal with kennel stress.
43. Have a romantic candlelit dinner.
44. Go out for a nice meal.
Yes, you heard us correctly. Indulge in the classic date activity and head out to one of your favorite restaurants. Bon appétit!
45. Jam out at a jazz club.
Live music of any kind is a fun time, obviously. But there's something extra classy about jazz, especially if you're snuggling up to your date at the same time.
46. Get competitive with a game night!
47. Relax in your at-home spa.
Plan a chill night in with a spa theme. Find your favorite scented candles, bring out your comfiest robe, and decide on what makes you both relax. Whether it's a DIY face mask or a bubble bath, feel the stress melt away together at home!
48. Learn about each other with questionnaires and personality tests.
Do you know each other's love languages? How about your Myers-Briggs personality? Quizzes are a delightful way to learn more about your partner and their quirks. And if you want to know what type of chicken wing they are, you know we got that on BuzzFeed.
49. Work on a DIY project you've been wanting to do.
50. Do an at-home wine tasting with bottles you've never tried before.
51. Go stargazing in your backyard on a clear night!
What's more romantic than cuddling up on a blanket in the grass and taking in the beauty of the night sky? While stargazing, you could make a game of searching for major constellations and planets. Or if you want a more relaxing vibe, share some earbuds and listen to a "space-themed" playlist.
52. Play your favorite Sega Mega Drive games.
53. Enjoy a decadent dessert together.
Love is sweet so make some treats! Indoor s'mores? Chocolate fondue? Ice cream sundae bar, anyone?
54. Compete to find your dream home.
Go to Zillow.com and pick a random city. Then, each of you will pick several houses in that city. Then, pitch each other Shark Tank-style on why you think the houses you chose are better than your partner's.
55. Play a game of Would You Rather?
56. Catch a preview show from a top comedy act.
57. Challenge yourselves and work on a puzzle.
58. Marathon a series you've had on your list or rewatch one you love.
59. Make a bunch of appetizers for dinner.
60. Curl up with a cup of ~gourmet~ hot cocoa.
Or make it a spiked hot chocolate for an extra kick.
61. Play a game of bingo.
62. Try out a date night subscription box like Happily, Crated with Love, or Unbox Love.
63. Tie-dye or bleach-dye some old clothes you have lying around.
You're never too old for some good, old-fashioned arts and crafts time!
64. Break a sweat and exercise together at home
65. Check out your old social media profiles and have a good laugh at each other's embarrassing teenage years
66. Go buy childhood snacks, for the nostalgic '90s and early-'00s kids.
Buy the childhood snacks you weren't allowed to have as kids. Then do a taste-test and rank them from best to worst.
67. Check out the zoo.
68. Indulge your adventurous side with some geocaching.
If you're after something a bit different, then why not try the urban adventure that is geocaching? It's effectively the world's largest treasure hunt.
People from all over hide little boxes containing a logbook and you have to use GPS coordinates to try and find them. When you do, you log your name, put it back, and go off to find your next one. It's incredibly addictive.
69. Grab some canvases and do your own paint night.
70. Recreate the magic of your first date.
71. Build a blanket and pillow fort, and have a cozy movie night.
Forts are not just for kids anymore. And who doesn't enjoy a comfy little hangout nook? Especially if you bring up the ambiance by hanging up some fairy lights. Don't forget your laptop and a bowl of popcorn.
72. Nab some free audience tickets for a primetime TV show.
It's a brilliant, unique night out and totally free!
73. Play a video game together and show off your skills.
74. Camp overnight in your backyard.
75. Make a delicious brunch at home complete with bottomless drinks of your choice!
76. Order takeout from your favorite restaurant.
This post contains content from Syd Robinson, Michele Bird, and hlmccarthy.