Very Definitely Not Dinner & A Movie
[ 3 June 2009 ]
Dating, oh dating. You are such a strange phenomenon, so amazing & simultaneously horrifying. Who knows where the night will begin or where it could all lead? But here’s the kicker — dinner & a movie is totally played out. You’re interesting, they’re interesting — surely that’s not the best you can come up with! So here, for your romantic pleasure, are a list of 50 alternative ideas to try.
Wake up at 4am & watch the sunrise together
Maybe not first date material, but perhaps third or fourth. What could be better than sitting close on a rooftop somewhere, talking & laughing & watching the sun come up? Take a flask of hot coffee for extra points.
Have an extravagant brunch at 8am
Get dressed up & do breakfast properly. Fabulous pancakes, decadent waffles, poached eggs & the best hollandaise. Boutique hotels often do a brilliant brunch, but a bit of surreptitious googling should set you on the right track. Thick white linen napkins first thing in the morning are a magnificent way to start the day — & then you can either go your separate ways, or take a walk.
Go to an art gallery on a Saturday afternoon
You’ll learn a lot about the person you’re standing next to if you go & check out art together. Plus it gives you something so much more stimulating to talk about than the last episode of Lost. (Sorry, Lost fans…)
Bring half an evening
Like a movie (or movie tickets), some food or a drink. You get the opportunity to impress your crush with your superior taste while also finding out more about them. You don’t have to meet at someone’s house, either — a park bench, good picnic spot or even town square could work too.
The double-Netflix date
For those of you not in America, Netflix is an on-demand DVD rental service that the entire country seems to have a subscription to. Sorry to be so geographically-specific, but “double-Netflix” rolls off the tongue a little better than, “Let’s just each bring a movie & subject one another to our extremely questionable taste”!
The Case Of The Mystery Band
Grab a copy of your local newspaper or magazine, close your eyes, run your finger over the “live music” section & choose a band neither of you have ever heard of to go & see. It could be amazing; it could be completely hellish — you won’t know until you go! But even if it’s shocking, it’s definitely a bonding experience, & maybe even something to tell the children, eh?
Make a fort
Enough said.
Bring your favourite book & read the first chapter aloud
Again, this says a lot about a person. Will they bring The Witches? Lolita? The 120 Days Of Sodom? I can barely stand the suspense…
Mix CD trade
Are mix CDs antiquated? Maybe you could just make one another a playlist on your iPod or something… Either way, sharing & discussing music is one of the world’s great, little-known aphrodisiacs. Truth. (Unless all they listen to is Richard Marx. Damn.)
Do something neither of you have done before
Pottery class? Swing dancing lessons? Hire a moped & drive out into the country? Who knows, but it’s nice to share an experience that is new to both of you!
Random restaurant date
Flip open the yellow pages to ‘R’ for ‘Restaurants’, close your eyes & pick a place to eat at. Just like the mystery band date, you never know how it’ll go — it could be a hidden treasure or a total health hazard, but that’s part of the fun, isn’t it?!
Hot air ballooning
Not the cheapest date idea, I’ll admit, but certain to score you points & to impress your lover-to-be. Maybe if you’re dating an heiress?
Decorate a Christmas tree together
Yes, this one is seasonal, but think how fun it would be! It’ll cheer up your (or their) apartment, give you a visual reminder of them (assuming the date goes well), & maybe you could even go ice-skating afterwards. Cute ++.
The Sunday New York Times crossword date
Bonus: intellectual stimulation, nerd points & you get to find out how clever they really are, all in one fell swoop. & wouldn’t it be great if you looked at them across the table, sunlight falling across their face, & they smiled at you & you thought, ‘I would like to spend every Sunday this way’? Yes. Yes it would.
Playground date
Slides are exciting. Monkey bars are fun. Swinging side by side is totally awesome, & you can have a contest as to who can swing higher. (Hint: if you are younger you will probably win this one. Older people, I have learned, sometimes feel motion sick on swings. Definitely one of the downsides of maturity.)
Tree-climbing date
No explanation required, but if you take them to a secret treehouse that no one else knows about, please don’t be surprised if they propose on the spot.
Video game arcade date
This isn’t always a perfect match, especially when it comes to girls in high heels & those weird shoot-em-up zombie games. Or whatever. (How impressed would you be by a drop-dead gorgeous girl kicking immense zombie butt, though?) But everyone likes air hockey. Don’t they?!
Ye olde photobooth hunt
Trawl your city for old-school photobooths & take as many strips as you can. Take props, maybe a silly wig or two, & see how bizarre you can make them. P.S. Photobooth.net is your go-to source for major photobooth info!
A drive-in movie
I admit, this one seems ultra-cool to me just because I’ve never done it & I am in love with Danny Zucco from here until eternity. Just don’t try to take your ring off by wiping it through your greasy hair & hit your girlfriend in the boob. “Oh Sandy baby, some day, when hiiiiiiiigh school is done!”
Sugarhigh date
Simple. Go to a convenience store. Buy cheap, evil, sugary treats. Find somewhere to sit & glut yourselves on them. Then see what happens. Spontaneous dancing? A completely misguided shopping trip? Leapfrogging over small children?! Let us know!
The socially irresponsible date
One word: graffiti. Rebels!
Pretend to be tourists
Go & do the stuff you’ve never done because, well, you’ve always lived here. Wear a baseball cap, khakis & a bum bag (“fanny pack”) for a feeling of real authenticity, & don’t forget to take photos!
“My old neighbourhood” date
Walk around the area you used to live, & tell your date about where you used to ride your bike, what happened on that one lawn, which house was best to hit up on hallowe’en & who the really creepy neighbours were.
The really long one-way walk
No rules except that you just have to walk for a really long time in one direction & not turn around. When you’re really exhausted or hit the ocean, it’s time to go back. Catch a taxi or a bus or something to ease the pain.
Take a dog for a walk
It doesn’t have to be yours, or even hers. Borrow your friend’s dog! They’re adorable & fun & will give you something to talk about if you get stuck. Plus, people will come up to you & say, “Cute dog”, & you can beam at each other like proud parents.
Go to the beach
Take music, towels, a big floppy sun-hat or two & enjoy the day. Build sandcastles, put sunscreen lotion on one another, go swimming & then travel home together as the sun is setting, relaxed & happy.
Karaoke!
I love karaoke. I love karaoke. I love karaoke. Again, it’s a great way to get to know someone — you’ll instantly know how outgoing they are, how much they like a challenge & what their music taste is like. Plus, usually in my experience, a day-glo private room & weird drinks are part of the package. Who could say no to that?
Collaborative art date
Get a canvas or even just a big piece of paper, some paint, pencils or pastels, & go nuts.
Walk around to different bars & tell stories about what happened
This one is kind of abstract, but I was once on a date with a guy where we went to three different bars & as we walked around, he told me about the strange & hilarious memories he had associated with those places. It helps that he was cute & a good storyteller, but still, it could work.
Go & listen to jazz
Pretend to be sophisticated. Or actually be sophisticated, depending…
Take cameras & explore an abandoned place
An excellent opportunity to be artsy-fartsy, or if you like to be on the other side of the camera, get them to take photos of you pulling your most beautifulest faces.
Medieval Times
Oh geez, does this need any explanation? No. Eating with your hands, handsome knights, silly hats? Sign me up!
“First date” night
This one works best if it’s not your actual first date. Like, for example, you’ve been together for 3 years & live in the same house. Get dressed separately, meet somewhere strange & a bit awkward, & pretend you don’t know one another. Start from scratch. Ask all those banal questions you’re supposed to ask (“So, what do you do?”). Then at the end of the night, rejoice that you’re in a relationship & not dating any more!
The generational date
Pretend you’re an age that you’re not, then act accordingly. A senior citizens date might involve going lawn bowling, making apple sauce & watching The Price Is Right. A teenager date might involve roller-skating, making out in public & drinking vodka in an alley-way. You get the idea.
The recession date
Triple B’s: eat at Burger King, take the bus to get there, then go & play bingo. Maybe you could go window shopping afterwards or huddle around a cigarette for warmth (thanks, Withnail & I).
The silent date
In a loud, noisy, overstimulating world, it can be nice to unplug & escape. But it can be nice to do that with your new favourite person, too. Hold hands & read books on a wharf & occasionally look adoringly at one another. Cool.
Make cupcakes together
You know you want to.
Make a video & put it on Youtube
You could really do anything & make a video of it, but it does at least give you a purpose & a goal. Plus, later on you have a record of what went on — & a slew of idiotic comments to wade through. Haha!
Liveblog your date
Upload pictures, tweet it, even give it a hash-tag. #evan&madelinesfirstdate. Cute.
Travel without going anywhere
The premise is simple. Have a normal date but speak with an accent. You both have to do it, by the way, or it doesn’t count. Choose something difficult for extra hilarity points, like Scottish or South African. Och aye!
Write letters to one another & post them
Maybe if you were on a date with a contender for Macho Man Of The Year this wouldn’t work, but I think it is almost the cutest idea ever. It’s definitely worth a try.
Dye each other’s hair
There’s nothing like a radical change to make life more exciting. Try blue-black or red or even pink! I wrote a how to, so there’s no excuse!
Sneak into a rooftop pool
They often have them at hotels, but they are usually only open to guests, so you might have to use your best sweet-talking skills, but it will be totally worth it if you can swing it. My suggestion? Just act as if you’re supposed to be there, & them questioning you is really just a waste of your time. Be charming but efficient. Godspeed!
Jump on a trampoline
The hardest part will be finding one, but I have faith in you!
Use sparklers to draw each other pictures
& maybe even write “GD + MKO 4 EVER”. (Take photos.)
Ice-cream parlour
Get a really, really, really big sundae & split it. Bicker over toppings. Then, when you’re done, find somewhere to lie down & talk about how sick you feel. A bonding experience to be sure!
Have a five-course dinner… at different places
Have an appetiser at one place, soup somewhere else, a main here, a dessert there, & coffee at your favourite cafe.
Play truth or dare
Awesome.
Three-hour make-out session
Choose a good location & use a stopwatch if necessary. Sounds like a good way to spend an afternoon to me.
What’s the best date you’ve ever been on?
RADICAL self-love & stardust,
Tags: inspiration,
life Follow me on Twitter! Listen to my latest podcast! Love & Sequins 10: International Playgirls Unlimited!
I like so many of these ideas! I can’t wait to try them out, the silent one reminds me of a Jonathan Safran Foer novel. I smiled reading the first date and generational date options. I’d also love for my boyfriend and I to walk his pet dogs some nice morning.
My last gf’s first date we pretended to be tourists. I took her to eat at red lobster in time square and then we took one of those double decker tour buses around new york. I brought us two holga cameras to use too. It was a success (I think?).
I’m starting to date again, I can’t wait. I’ve always been a fan of planning dates.
Super cute, Gala.
Sure to be useful too!
Lots of love!
XOXO
the tourist thing is my favourite! CUTE IDEAS, I’ll make use of this list :DD thanks Gala girl
Oh Gala, I would date you in a heartbeat! I love, love, love the letter writing idea. So very cute! Where do you come up with these things?
Are you still in Toronto? How are you liking my hometown?
Hahah, love the jumping over children idea.
My favorite date was just cuddling up with this kid on my couch watching the worst horror movie ever. We made fun of it and it showed me he had a sense of humor which is such a turn on for me. (:
My favorite date- We met up on campus at 2am just to walk around and chat. We ended up sitting with our feet in a fountain, talking about everything in the world and that devolved into wading around in the fountain, which again devolved into much laughing and splashing and kissing.
There are a lot of great ideas up there.
I’d like to add:
Photo scavenger hunt- Make a list of random things, colors, animals or give it a theme. Then go out and photograph something that fits each requirement on the list. Also works brilliantly for group dates- you can split off into couples and then come back and compare findings!
Pac Man walk- Kind of like the long walk, but with rules! Keep moving no matter what. If you hit a “don’t walk” sign, cross the street and go that way until you hit another “don’t walk.” See where you end up (and what you discover along the way)!
i’m going to do a few of these with my friends.. definately generational date (seniors). yesss!
I simply can’t stop smiling!!! AMAZING IDEAS!
My current boyfriend + I’s first date was at this really pretentious modern art museum which neither of us knew was going to suck so badly (think literally garbage on the floor + string suspended from the ceiling). The date turned into him stopping me from kicking the art over, + was apparently a huge success! Probably because we had coffee at a mega-cute coffee place afterward and he bought. :)
Awesome ideas! my favourite dates….
Maybe the time we went to some hippy markets and bought fishermans pants and potplants, then went back to his uncles where we swam ‘au natural’, well, i was in his shirt!
Or the time when he made me a spa with candles and wine and then we went outside to watch the stars and tried to find constellations.
:) ahh so much fun!
I’ve said it once or twice, but seriously Gala, psychic powers!
Yesterday my boyfriend&I had an argument over really petty issues&we both realized how worried we were of becoming bored or boring.
So we came up with date ideas to make things more exciting. Like, pick a word or subject&give 15minutes to write a short story or poem on it; share! Or both come up with a cute comic featuring you both or your aliases!
These will be of much help! Thanks Gala!
PS My boyfriend totally wants to read Lolita, so now I’ll just read the first chapter to him!
For my last Birthday my boyfriend bought two hot air balloon tickets, despite the fact that he is terrified of heights.
The thing is, I find the floating feeling really relaxing, but the balloon just shoots right up, and I honestly thought he was going to pass out. When it got a bit lower though, he was okay.
Then we had a huuuuuge breakfast. It was awesome.
Otherwise, I am pretty keen on drinking wine on the lawn at night in summer, photobooths and ramen.
Also watching Twin Peaks together.
Mmm.xx
May I recommend a quiz night date? All of the benefits of the crossword date, but quiz nights bring out the worst in everyone (competitive instinct, the stinging pain of defeat) so you won’t get any nasty surprises and then you can have discussions about just how come your date knows so much about Kylie Minogue’s former boyfriends. Then you can go barbecue the $25 meat pack you won afterward.
True romance.
This, my dear, is the best post you’ve done in ages—which, considering your magnificently high standards of posting, is saying an unbelievably, incredibly large lot!
Oh my God, drive-ins are the best!! And even better when you bring a heap of disgusting, greasy fast food and junk food and fold all the seats down and have the boot open (if it’s like a hatchback style car) and set up the inside of the car like a bed, with lots of pillows and doonas and wear big, fuzzy socks. Oh back in the day..
I’ve never dated anyone! :( Then again, I am only 13 (14 in July) Also, I am thinking of starting a blog. Should I use a free website like blogger or pay for one like this. Please Help!
Aww! I always try to think of unusual date ideas, and it is major + points when my date does too! Super randomness while getting to know someone = the best memories.
I recently went on a majorly cute/nerdy/awkward date. It was a first date; he said he’d show me his favorite neighborhood of the city. At one vintage toy store, the owner was super friendly to us because my date goes there so often and we left with tons of free random and useless stuff like Kewpies dressed up as Bruce Lee. Then we went to an arcade where he showed off his mad UFO catcher skills and proceeded to win me the pink gloomy bear that I had “ooh“d over, in just a few tries. He could’ve kicked my butt in a rhythm game because he’s a drummer, but he set it up in collaborate mode instead. The whole night he made fun of me in a familiar, teasing way (secret— I love being made fun of!) As we were walking around he asked me to hold something while he tied his shoe and I said “Sure,” expectantly holding out my hand. And then he took it and I stared at him for 3 seconds. And then burst out laughing. And then he burst out laughing. And said “I can’t believe that worked!” And I said “I can’t believe that you used a Jr. High School gimmick to hold my hand.” And we laughed some more. And we swung our arms while holding hands the whole walk back to the train station.
Ack! So random that you mentioned Richard Marx! I work with a man called Richard Marx (an older gentleman lawyer) and today we’ve been joking with him about another guy called Richard Marx who designs computer games and featured in the newspaper this week. Coincidence.
great tips …husband always says sex is the greatest date because it’s free …lol.
these ideas are so fun!
One of my first dates was the best. It was in high school and my boyfriend forgot to get me a guestpass to the dance at his school so I couldn’t get in. It was a group date and the other couples opted out of the lame school dance so we could all hang together. We ended up going to a gazebo near a river and danced to norah jones playing over the car stereo. Such a good memory!!
I think washing your dog (or his dog or whatever) together would be so fun! It’s def going to lead to a water fight and it’s getting a chore done at the same time! (Just don’t tell him that!)
AAAAAUGH these are so cute and I want to do them all, but they also kinda made me sad because I may or may not have missed a chance with a verrrrrrry cute and potentially awesome stranger-boy in a bookstore last week, and I’ve been kicking myself ever since. He seemed like the kind of guy who would be totally up for most, if not all of these, too. BOOO on me.
But YAAAAY for this article cause it wins major cute awards regardless of me not having anyone to be cute with.
What do you think of the 120 Days of Sodom type?
I think and ADORABLE date would be a Create-A-Sim date! Bring a laptop, a copy of The Sims (1, 2, or 3—whichever you prefer), and design the entire family and their home. You two can either create people from scratch or make doppelgangers of people you know in real life and go wild!
The cutest date I’ve ever been on was when my boyfriend and I walked from his holiday home to the beach and he pointed out a pontoon that he used to swim out to as a kid. We raced out to it (he let me win) and spent the whole day laughing and getting really sunburnt together, then we went home and rubbed aloe gel all over each other :)
My boyfriend and I have been dating nearly a year, and we still try to go on fun dates together.
Last week, we drove and found a deserted beach where we snuggled in the blanket we usually keep in the car, had a bit to smoke, wrote funny things to eachother in the sand, and then watched the sun start to set!
It was an absolutely amazing time. We had such a good laugh when we were writing in the sand.
Gala’s back on form!
This is adorable and useful.
My favourite date of all time involved drinking psychedelic mushroom tea, climbing a tree spring-ripe with blossoms and sitting there giggling at the sky, and then going to see Donnie Darko in the most beautiful old theatre in Auckland. You don’t need stimulants to make a date wonderful, and I wouldn’t recommend it as a regular thing, but in this case it was magic. The guy and I didn’t go anywhere but the night itself was lovely. :)
LOVELY!
best date ever.
1- go carts
2- waffles
3- scary movie
4- makeout time…
sweet. simple. and to the point. he got bonus points for the scary movie [reason to hold hands and pretend to be more scared then you actually are.. yesss]
it was great and magical and simple and darling.
120 Nights of Sodom! Oh my!! :O
Gala, I love you so much! This list is awesometastic.
best list ever! thank you Gala. I’m hoping to use some of these ideas verrrrry soon.
One of the greatest dates I’ve ever had was with my exboyfriend. We were both interested in photography, and when we first met he showed me his AMAZING professional, big digital camera that I was just dying to have a go at using… So, on our second date, he picked me up, and started driving and didn’t tell me where we were going…
We ended up in the city, and he brought out his gorgeous camera, handed it to me, and said, “Go nuts”. We walked around the city for hours taking photo’s of graffiti, old buildings, and whatever took my fancy, and talking about everything, and then when we’d run out of city to photograph, he took me for a massive bowl of lemon gelati (my favourite).
It was right then and there that I knew I was in love with him too. We aren’t together anymore, but we’re really good friends, and every time we’ve had a couple of glasses of wine and start reminiscing, that night always comes up in conversation… It was the best date I’ve ever had in my life.
Last month I found my mother’s first camera amongst my hoards of stuff- it is a chunky, black & silver beast, with no flash or zoom.
My boy and I loaded it up with B&W film and walked around Wellington, taking photos of each other and the scenery. Many blurry attempts to capture our kisses ensued as we wandered for hours, stopping at the Sunday morning vege market and a little fishing boat selling fresh snapper to those who’d gathered around. It was so much fun and there was much anticipation while we waited for them to get developed!
This month I am totally having him over at mine to play old Beatles and Simon & Garfunkel records while we bake apricot pie. We’ll eat it in our knitted cardies while we play bingo in front of the fire, and spike our hot chocolates with brandy XD
I’m in LOVE with these ideas. Thank you Gala! This is absolutely, positively one of my favorite posts :)
Funny that you should mention Medieval Times. I’m actually the princess there at the Florida location. I’ve been the princess for 6 years, since I was 16 :) It’s been incredible amounts of fun, especially because when people ask what I do, I can honestly say, “I’m a princess.” And I concur; it’s a great date place!
I love that you went on an imaginary date with Mary-Kate Olsen in this post. :)
I love love loved this! I’ll be keeping these in mind!
YAAAAY! This is so appropriate for today (it is me and my boy’s date night and we have run out of things to do on our list). Thankyou Darlingface!
On my first date with my boyfriend we took a train into the city, and wandered about for hours, through the different parks and gardens and pedestrian shopping malls and ate hot chips on the riverside, watching the boats go past.
It was lovely because we got to talk about anything and everything for ages, and we showed each other our favorite places. And it cost next to nothing!
I LOVE IT
I LOVE IT
I LOVE IT
I LOVE IT
as you can tell i love all the ideas you have posted! i sent you an email a few months ago for some unique ideas for a date, minus the boring dinner and movie date. and gala, you have delivered!!! (as you always do so brilliantly!) i can not wait to try out these ideas!! i am only hoping my other half agrees and comes along for the ride :P if not, ill go solo!! hehe
thanks gala xxoo
I met my boyfriend at a Mystery Band show: a friend had dragged him there and I had decided to Do Something that night. The band tourned out to be awful, which was a blessing in disguise since we spent the entire show outside the venue, drinking beer and talking for hours.
is 21 close enough to being a teenager to still drink vodka in an alley, because i still do.
although, since i am *mature* i drink gin now :)
these idea’s sound gorgeous!
i just wish i had someone to do them with… although there is a cute boy i have my eye on.
;)
these are great!
we need to bring dating back. i feel like everyone just gets drunk, hooks up, has a brief pow-wow as to whether they want to start “going out”, and then i see them holding hands at the bar. where was the courtship??? nowhere.
this is inspiring. i should carry it around with me. “hey cute boy i’ve never met, wanna go on a hot air balloon with me?” YES.
aAAAAH this i so cute! Best date was a simple one- driving around the coast in the middle of the night!
I have some suggestions as well, but Gala yours are TOO CUTE.
1. This doesn’t even have to be a date, but can be a sort of ‘self-date’ if you want it to. Zoom over to google maps and start making yourself a private map with all of the places you’ve always wanted to visit in your city and never have, or places you’ve had so much fun that they qualify as good enough to pretend you’re popping your cherry there over and over again.
This for me was an excellent chance to explore my city virtually because I’d started to feel it was getting boring and old. I found masses of things that I realised I’d had on my to-do list but needed to really have it all there in front of me to see how many cool things there were! Anyway, send the map to your date a few days in advance and have him make one and send it to you. If you’ve got some overlapping places think about heading there, if there are none plan a route to include some of both of your places!
2. Buying a waffle maker in the shape of a loveheart. Have lots of toppings on hand to satisfy any cravings and to draw adorable things on your waffles with.
3. Plan to meet in a central spot (preferably city centre) along with half a picnic each (consisting of foods you particularly love, or those that you made with love) then go to your local bus stop, grab yourselves a completely random route map and jump on a bus from it. Ride the bus right to the end of the route and picnic/explore there! If it’s winter bring yourself some umbrellas and hot chocolate. Also works with subways/trains/horses and carriages.
<3 for the return to super-cuteness && articles
these are amazing.
definately made me smile :)
i adore these kind of posts gala!
Best dates I’ve had:
Eating icecream in the park. Reading Edgar Allen Poe aloud to each other in bed. Long bubble-baths. Watching Battlestar Galactica on the couch.
I think a spin on the generational date could be a Date Like You Live in the 50s kind of thing: jazz dancing and booze for the 20s, outdoor concert for the 60s, roller-disco for the 80s…!
These are such great suggestions!
Oh! And to expand on the arcade idea, go to a penny-arcade if possible. They’re so old and cute and full of creepy clown cardboard cutouts. My lover took me to one by the church where his parents were married and it was damned adorable.
Couldn’t have come at a better time – I’ve been needing some inspiration for fun things to do with the lad!
P.S. South African accents ARE hard, it seems! I’m still waiting for an even slightly convincing one to turn up in a movie ;)
i actually considered tweeting/blogging my whole upcoming first date.
but then realized only my 2 best friends would read it.
ha.
Gala your a legend!! Manfriend and I have been umming and ahhing over what to do for our one year anniversary! We’ll probably combine all these into one super date!
AMAZING date ideas. I really like the one about choosing a mystery band. What a fun idea!
I must agree with everyone else, this is one of your best posts, and the ideas all look really great fun!
I have a quick question regarding Love & Sequins (sorry for posting it on an irrelevant post, but I thought it would be better to comment on the most recent one). If I buy the latest installment at $12 then decide to subscribe for the year, will I have to pay for it again, i.e. the full $84? Sorry if that’s been asked before!
This post is lovely! I wish there were drive-ins in the UK, sigh…. Can we now have a post about how to get people for dates please? hahaha!
LOVE!!! Possibly the cutest thing I’ve read in my life.
hmm… these sound like fun. I’ve only ever been on the boring as movie, walking around, awkward date. Horrible. But I really really want to have a date like Pudge and Alaska in Looking for Alaska. They are the only ones left at boarding school over thanksgiving break, and they drink pink wine- ‘strawberry hill’, search for four leaf clovers, build a candle, read by moonlight… play video games, raid peoples dorms. sigh… I wish I could find a Pudge of my own haha.
These are all absolutely wonderful ideas and not just for dating but for some of us “old married” couples.
My best date was when I got taken to the Sydney Observatory to see all the pretty stars!! Late night pancakes finished off by far the most thoughtful and original date I have ever been on.
So many cute ideas! The playground was my favorite date spot back in the days of being single – although I’d love to find someone to decorate a Christmas tree with!
I’m going to take some of these ideas and use them for a non-romatic date when I vist my best friend in America. I think it’d be a great way for us to hang out and spend some time together.
I like the date they go on in Breakfast at Tiffany’s where they took turns doing things they’d never done before…
I like reading all the comments on this post, it shows that a good date is something unique that can be shared between two particular people… like, lots of the dates I’ve read about in the comments don’t sound like anything I would want to do but you can tell by how the person talks about it that it was perfect for them! I guess that’s the key to a great date!
I still like to remember this perfect date I had with a guy I went out with a few years ago where he told me to come skiing with him (we lived in a ski resort) so I met him at the lift and we went up to the top and instead of skiing back down, we climbed up & over the back of the mountain where there aren’t any trails (ie no people). we spent a couple of hours building a ski jump then spent the whole rest of the afternoon taking turns jumping off it! then at the end of the day we headed back down the mountain to the pub. it was a really great day!
I love how most of these dates are totally things you can do with your best friends, too. I fully believe in friend dates, by the way. I’m married, so I don’t need a romantic partner, but sometimes I do need excuses to get together with my girlfriends. makeout session? well, why not?
Fun things I’ve done with my friends that brought us closer (that you haven’t already listed):
-scrapbooking day: hours upon hours of gluesticks, glitter, photos of our younger selves and such great conversations
-drinking games
-hot tub parties
-meeting at different wine bars about once a month
-sneaking onto the roof of an elementary school for no particular reason
-getting stuck in the rain and walking home slowly
-writing dates: getting together to help each other edit whatever we’re working on
Oh, forgot to mention that the one date I’ve always wanted to go on (even though it is so simple) is berry-picking because they are delicious and I always find outdoor dates to be super romantic.
Also, I had a dream once about being engaged to a guy who gave hot air balloon tours of Tanzania. I guess that means I should grab a guy and find a balloon!
Other ideas:
~Talent show! I’ll show off my mad hoop skills, he’ll serenade me with Italian opera.
~Set a budget ($20?) and head to a thrift shop with a time limit and the goal of buying the other the most fantastic gift.
~Find an elevator in a really tall building, start at floor one, and make out all the way to the top. Then back down. Repeat, if desired!
~Sneakily find out all of his favorite childhood pasttimes (playing in the creek? watching Star Wars? toasting marshmallows?) and incorporate them into a date.
~Waltz. Around your living room, through town square, in an apple orchard, wherever! Time to revive good old-fashioned romance!
~I did this with my friends once, but it could also work as a date, and it’s pretty easy to do if you’re at uni. Find a sports field, sit and talk. Play with a soccer ball. Huddle under a blanket. Have a ridiculous singalong.
~Go hiking! Nature, fresh air, a physical challenge—sometimes there’s nothig better.
Thank you, Gala! My boyfriend is a music teacher who recently lost a bunch of students and so we’ve pretty much resigned ourselves to sitting on his couch and watching movies while he gets drunk and complains about being too broke to do anything. I can’t wait to try some of these ideas as cheap and easy dates to get him out and cheer him up while spicing things up for us and keeping him away from the vodka! Thank you, thank you, thank you. Also, some of these would make awesome playdates with my best friend- I would love to try some of these out with her too!
Me and my boyfriend do the crossword every sunday over toast/bagels/vegan pancakes and juice. I LIVE for it!
These are brilliant! I’m seeing a cute boy next week so I’m going to suggest some of these.
Some of my favorite dates I’ve been on: pumpkin picking, poetry readings, trying food at the most hygienically questionable restaurant in town, hot dogs in Jersey city & surviving to make it to a Yankees game, picnics, finding secret nature paths, & my favorite, by far, kissing for hours on a balcony after splitting a pitcher of stout beer & listening to Cat Power on repeat.
oh my goodness I want to try like 49 of these…lol.
Oh, finally! I have been waiting for another one of your fabulous posts like this. You are great at making lists of cute and exciting and creative things. I can’t wait to do some of these. Thanks Gala(:
For our first date, my boyfriend broke into his high school and gave me a tour of all his memories there.
A.Y. — Aw I would date you too! Toronto is being good to me, everyone here is so FRIENDLY, I love it!
Retro.Bunny — I think by now everyone has heard the story about the boy who recited the first chapter of Lolita to me & I fell completely head-over-heels, god what a scene! Hopefully you reading it to him has the same effect ;D
Keely — Thanks so much little one!
Teresa — I’m so jealous! Maybe a drive-in date needs to go on my list of things to do this summer.
Amy — AHH he sounds so cute. Are you going to see him again?!
Gem Wilder — Haha my first ever boyfriend was obsessed with Richard Marx!
Rachel Haywire — You know me baby, all-inclusive to a fault. & I only mentioned books I actually own ;D
Angel — Aw, that is so lovely & thoughtful!
Miss Bea — Your Beatles/apricot pie/cardigan/brandy hot chocolate date sounds superb, wish I could crash the party, hahah.
Eveleena — HAHA I can’t believe it! That is amazing!
Nadia — I love that you noticed, hahah, you’re my girl!
Kylie — Thank YOU for the suggestion!
Molly B — I know, romance has been lost! Where did it go?! No fun!
miss morgan potts — Yes, I love the era date idea! Brilliant!
Vixel — Send me an email & we’ll work something out!
Emma — Yes they would make for great friendship dates. Anything is better than the same old same old!
Kathryn Proulx — Tooooooooo cute.
Fact: I know for sure 100% that it won’t work out when someone is repeatedly “too shy” to sing at karaoke, even if they’re already surrounded by people who are already screeching at the top of their lungs.
Love the fake tourist idea, too! Creative types are the BEST fun. (I forget not everyone likes improv, woe woe woeeee)
Today I went chasing after ducklings, had an impromptu pillowfight, and tried to revive a butterfly. We just met a couple of days ago, too! Wish us luck xx
Naked breakfast: what better way to start your day and treat your lover than with breakfast and a lite something extra!? Bonus points for sexy extras!
Body art: doesn’t need to be done by both parties. My boyfriend doesn’t want any himself, but thinks it’s hot that I got my nipples and clit pierced this week ( can I use this as my tilt?). It’s really fun and it’s nice having your one and only with you! Don’t want something perment? No problem! Matching henna tattoos/capsul machine temporaries work too. You can also go to claires and get fake body jewelry (magnetic earrings make good nose rings)!
Zoo trip: because who DOESN’T love animals?!
I like the idea of the roof top pools. My boyfriend wants to spend a nigt at a hotel with me (lacking money for it at the moment). He likes hotel swimming pools and hot tubs! It’s like a mini get-away!
The best date I ever went on? I think it was when my boyfriend at the time and I went to the zoo and we had to draw a picture of every animal we saw.
We’re both animators so we take drawing animals to whole new level. lol
Afterwards we spent two days hiding in our apartment from the world because we got fried like little slices of canadian back bacon! lol
This is such a great list! The bf and I have been thinking of really interesting things to do and go on dates to freshen things up and I’m def gonna show him this.
I love this! Thank you! :)
My boyfriend and I live in separate states (I’m actually moving up there after I graduate, which is next week) and whenever I go up top visit him we always go to a gas station and load up on slushies, soda, and candies and take them all to the playground and hang out.
This is amazing. I am so tired of going on the same old same old dates, where you talk about the same things and don’t experience anything new. Some of these are most definitely getting tried out. Thanks for yet another excellent post!
Really good ideas!
When my bf and I got together (we both moved to this new city and hadn’t explored it), we hopped a random bus and alighted as soon as we saw some countryside, it was a sunny day and we had a picnic and had a pretend wedding, I took so many photos and experimented with the settings on my camera. It was like Teletubby land!
These ideas are adorable! I can’t wait to have a double-Netflix date. And of course all of America has a subscription… Netflix is the future. :P
These are exceptionally great ideas! I hope to try the gourmet brunch idea seeing as I love to cook. I already have the menu planned out. Hey, maybe we can even squeeze in a crossword puzzle after we eat!
My now-husband surprised me on one of our first dates with an excursion to the drive in theater. I couldn’t believe he found one in Chicago in 2007! But I should’ve known by his slicked back retro pompadour that he’d be my Danny Zuko. Ultra cool and romantic :)
Aw! These all make me super-excited to get back on the same continent as my boy. (27 days! Not that I’m counting, or anything.)
A friend once did the breakfast at a fancy hotel thing as a first date— in Prague. They’re both Americans: she was studying abroad there and he happened to be going to Vienna anyway and took a day trip. It didn’t work out (too much pressure?) but they both have a lovely story. Very “Before Sunrise”.
Secondhand bookshops are also great date locations…
Very adorable. Haha… something of these things my bff Kenzie and I have already done. I will save this, if ever the opportunity comes along.
this is absolutely adorbs, gala! (which, btw, is one of the cutest words i could imagine!)
and your timing is ridiculously perfect – i’ve been spending days trying to plan something fun&creative&cute for my boy and my three month anniversary. thank youu!
I’m so glad you’ve posted this! I’ve just decided recently to dip my toes into OKCupid waters, and this list will be most helpful! :)
Oh good lord, MEDIEVAL TIMES.
I cannot wait to move to a country that is not NZ or Aus.
It would be like being in the movie Garden State: “He’s not a real knight, he’s just a fast food knight.”
My best date ever, ROWING! I was wearing my new high heels, a dress if i wasn’t carefull someone could see my underwear.. but it was worth it! We had fun splashing around & staring romantically into each others eyes… ooh i even dared him to row together wich was not so brilliant but just c u t e.
I still love him & all our dates.
Btw i think dates that included nature are always suprisingly great. I mean a starry night, sunsets or sunrises, hiking to a spot to have a view over the city, dancing through the rain…
Oooooh Gala, what an amazing post. Now you’ve got me thinking about all the amazing dates I’ve been on!
1. Once, CDH (that stands for Cantankerous Drummer Husband, btw) took me too this amazing, rocky beach near where he grew up – in the middle of a storm. We had the entire place to ourselves to run around, climb on the rocks, and cuddle in the cold. Then we went for a drive around the area and looked at all the houses and farms and talked about all the stuff we wanted in a house we built together.
2. One of the very first ‘dates’ we went on (we weren’t going out at this point) was to see one of my friend’s metal bands. I always remember CDH leaning against the stage, headbanging to ‘The Trooper’ with his arms around me and a large, hairy dude. It was quite epic!
3. CDH told me to grab my tin whistle, and he grabbed his flute, and we went down to the park and had a jam. Oh, the crowd that gathered!
4. We love going CD shopping together – we spend hours in the music store (literally HOURS) debating over various bands and whittling down out stack of ‘possibles’ and talking to the staff. We also love to go to music shops to jam.
5. An old boyfriend of mine once took me to the observatory, where we looked at saturn through a telescope. I’m legally blind and I’d never, ever seen planets or stars up that close before – it was really special.
Thank you much,Gala!! This is perfect. I can’t wait to bring this up!! Your lists are pure awesomesause!!
Damn girl, I love your brain! So many of these are the kinds of things I think about doing.. as soon as I saw ‘build a fort’, I was like ‘man, I’m gonna be all OVER this shit!’. Mad props to you Gala. Beautiful! xx
my parents met over a sunday cross word puzzle. they’ve been married for 18 years now with 2 kids. so its defiantly a good first date!
My boyfriend and I decided to recreate our first date for out year anniversary of being together. We bussed to a favorite arcade/bowling alley to play DDR and lay on the floor kissing. Then we went to the diner next door and ate a large plate of nachos and drank coffee while we waited it for midnight. Then, we headed over to the Rocky Horror Picture show where I proceeded to win the lingerie show wearing nothing but black, lacy panties and Nippies (pink and black striped stars). My boyfriend seemed nervous but proud. :)
Anyway, your “first date” idea made me think of that and I thought you would appreciate it.
this is such an excellent list!
much of it will go onto my on-going to do list
the best part is that these are things you can do with just friends too, not necessarily a date..
Well, my favorite date was probably on Valentine’s day. He picked me up at my house and gave me an origami flower (seriously awesome). Then we went straight to the place where the robotics team that he’s on was building their robot (he knew I wanted to see it). We spent a while there, then he found out that the band we were going to listen to wasn’t going to start their practice until later than we thought, so we went to his house and he showed me how to tie a fly (for fishing, you know?).
It was great, and I just really wish that I didn’t have to break up with him. Ugh.
Anyhow, I think that your exciting big-city dwellin’ life has really shown on this list. Why? Let’s take a look at your date ideas.
In my small Arizona town, we have no art galleries (the nearest one is at least an hour away), bands only play about once a month in the park (local only, which could be lots of fun but you’d have to time it right), hot air balloons only once a year (there’s a whole festival and everything, though! Awesome date material!), no drive-ins (though you can always set one up in your backyard), no beach (or lakes, but we have a fun river in the springtime, and lots of hiking opportunities), no karaoke (unless you do it at home, which could be fun), nothing even close to Medieval Times (but there’s always Tombstone, which is fun), and I never even knew rooftop pools existed until you mentioned them (seriously, I’ve NEVER HEARD OF THEM!).
However, I’m determined to be positive, so we DO have some great hiking opportunities (so long as you’re in before dark, so as to avoid the animals and the illegals), a pretty cool indoor pool (not too expensive, either!), and… well… lots of homemade fun!
You know, it would be awesome if you did an article on how to have fun in a small town. Because it can get really boring in a place where you have to plan an all-day trip to go shopping (since the only good store around here is this really awesome second-hand place, and you have to leave town for anything else).
And I just realized that I really abused parenthesis in this comment. I apologize to the gods of grammar.
Love these ideas!!! Will be sure to use them post university exams:) And I’m also planning quite an extreme first date the weekend after my exams are over: jumping outta a airplane together:) Now that smth you don’t do everyday;) and then we’re going dancing – that is, if we both survive:D
uuu..just thought of another one: play dress up! there’s three ways you can do this: a)use each other clothes to dress yourself b) go to costume boutique/thrift store whatever c) dress one another. or heck, all three at once:D
GALA, THIS IS FABULOUS AND YOU HAVE PERFECT TIMING.
My boyfriend and I have been together for six weeks (it’s all so new still!) but we never actually go anywhere, we always end up just watching movies or tv and eating and lying around at my house, haha.
Movies and pyjamas are great but these ideas are fabulous, specially cos we never really went on many dates (other than a bunch of festivals and gigs) before we made it “official”.
FABULOUS!
THANKYOU!
Eww why would anyone wanna read Salo ? Hahahahah Gala ! WHY !
these are adorable!! i can’t wait to try some of these with this cute boy i’ve been seeing :]
I have a good one – Walk around a small town at 1-2 in the morning together. The roads will be empty, so you can walk in the middle of the street just holding hands and talking. It’s a great way to get comfortable with someone, because you’re both extremely tired and goofy, and it’s too dark to care about what you look like or what you’re wearing. It feels like you’re the only two people on the planet.
My last girlfriend and I did that for our 3-4th date. We had our first kiss while sitting under a tree next to a nice quiet road. It was the best night (morning?) of my life.
What great ideas! Another favourite of ours (my boyfriend and I) is the elderly date – check out the local antique and craft mall and then head over to luby’s cafe (a hot spot for old people) :) And we’ve only been to see two movies for as long as we’ve dated (2 years 8 months) haha, we try to stay away from typical.
And it was lovely to come here and see our photo from our recent trip to a photobooth on your blog :) thank you.
Print out the list of date ideas, chop them apart, put them into a hat, and pull one out! :)
wow. I’m single but CAN’T WAIT to be in love ::sigh::
thanks for this
oh my gosh, those are all such wonderful ideas— you covered all the bases :)
These are amazing ideas! Getting sugar high with my bf would have hilarous results, no doubt, and I’ve actually always wanted to go to a playground with him.
Once, I killed a substantial portion of time with my guy by wandering around a Wal-Mart! Anywhere or anything is alright with the right person, I guess.
I loved the idea about acting like old people and going lawn bowling. My favourite date was going to Color Me Mine, and my boyfriend made me a mug to take on vacation to New York. I loved it, regardless if he painted it Lakers colors.
my favorite date was with a boy i really really liked, who was super adorable and simply fascinating. neither of us could drive, as i wasn’t quite old enough and he was nearly blind in one eye, so he walked to my house (we lived a little over 5 minutes away from each other) and we took the bus to our local mall. i’d never taken the bus before. we did our christmas shopping together and just had a good time getting to know each other, and then went to see a movie. he let me choose the silly animated movie, and we looked at each other and smiled when small children commented on the film behind us. i didn’t catch on until the third or fourth time he asked me if i was cold that he was just looking for an excuse to put his arm around me.. he was comfortable and smelled good and was nervous. sitting at the bus stop, we huddled together for warmth in the snow, and on the bus he let me pull the chord for the stop at my house. we walked arm in arm down the street to my driveway, where he gave me my gift and told me to close my eyes for the second part of my christmas present. a good suspenseful wait later, i felt him take my face in his hands and kiss me. i was so surprised that i couldn’t walk straight down my driveway as i kept looking back at him, and then i couldn’t take the stupid grin off of my face. he was the first boy i ever fell in love with, and by far the best kisser.
plus i didn’t even know it was a date until about three quarters through haha.
i also liked feeding each other spoonfuls of our favorite ice cream directly from the carton, walking around the neighborhood in the rain for hours with no distination and only a vague idea of where we were, making snowpeople that are holding hands in a public place, or them showing up unexpectedly at my bedroom window in the middle of the night.
I’ve been with my boy-thing for almost four years now, so I’m always excited to read things like this!
Today, we’re visiting a place near Amish country where you hop on a fancy train and take a ride through the country side!
i ever went on a date at the fitness corner at night! secluded and serene. haha.
AMAZING!!:D why do i always love to read about things like this.. maybe i’m in love with the love.
aw, this makes me miss some of my old boyfriends! my high school sweetheart took me to a treehouse overlooking the ocean once (we also planned to travel to Medieval Times together, but broke up before then! and yes, we dyed each other’s hair pink and blue♥). as for the ‘sneaking into the rooftop pool,’ they’re a bit scarce here in chilly Washington state, but for our first date, we sneaked into a hotel, got free hot chocolate in the lobby, and watched the waves crash on the pier there. another boy told me to “dress up” with no other clue as to our date… he called a towncar and took me to a posh jazz club! another boy and i timed how long we could kiss in photobooths before we were caught. i’m v.single right now but i have some great memories, at least!
Amaaazing post!
Beautiful :)
Another one… (kinda of an expansion) Spend a day in the forest, stop the night at the first B+B you can find.. pretend you’re in Scandanavia or something haha
Gala, I just wanted to know whether you did all the above suggestions and what where the results like??? xx
Considering how stale our love life was starting to get, this post came just in time!
Excellent article, although I would agree that most of the ideas are aimed at people who live in big cities. But alas, that’s where all the fun is anyway!
Also—drive ins are the beessstttt! There’s one about thats a 15 minute drive from my house and my boyfriend/friends and I love going. It’s only $7 and is always a double feature, plus you can bring all the blankets, pillows, and junk food you could ever need.
My other suggestion is going to an amusement park/carnival. Roller coasters and cotton candy; so cheesy but adorable!
My best date was with my current boyfriend!
We took a long drive north (about an hour) to a butterfly conservatory! we put them on our fingertips, arms, and got brave enough to put them on our heads! Interacting with nature somehow tends to bring couples or dates even closer together.
We then drove over to the beach and had an afternoon picnic! Though it was a little bit chilly (we went in September), it was worth it because the beach was empty! We blew bubbles, took photos together and the date ended with him playing me guitar.
We like to copy dates we’ve previously had, and try something new the next time around! Flying kites t the beach is our new goal!
-AngieDearest
Our best date yet was our unofficial first one. We went on a late night (around 11 pm) spontaneous bike ride into this neighborhood just outside of our dorms. Then, we rode around a park and the entire time he kept trying to scare me and tell me he could see dead people and stuff. And then we just rode around and walked through this beautiful garden that we have off campus. Luckily, I had a flashlight on me and we used it and discussed our favorite flowers, fruits, and veggies and we also discussed our lives, backgrouds, and future aspirations.
Excellent date overall! =)
none of my ex’s ever did any of those for me. they’re too into working and going about their business. one did actually make me breakfast one morning, and set up dinner for us on valentines day… but that didn’t last.
but those are all wonderful ideas…
Just lovely, thank you for the inspiration~
Has anyone else gotten spammed by this post recently? I bookmarked it some time ago and I opened up my browser today to see that it had mysteriously added itself not once, but three times to my Firefox toolbar, and it is the only link I can’t delete from my bookmarks. Not cool.
I’m having the same bookmark issue. The link just won’t budge, no matter how many times I delete it!
oh hey, you already had the elderly date – must have missed that one! :)
this is SO ADORABLE. I am cringing with cuteness, and can’t wait to try out a few of my faves!
xx
xazddesign.com