This blog post is kind of ironic because my boyfriend and I don’t actively celebrate Valentine’s Day.
We don’t do gifts or plan special dates specifically for Valentine’s Day because we think it just adds unnecessary stress.
Like why are we scrambling to find gifts that get marked up when Valentine’s Day comes around? Or stressing about making reservations to restaurants we want to go to when we can just go to that same restaurant some other day?
I do have to say though, that I’ve been in a relationship for quite some time. Whether or not we celebrate Valentine’s Day doesn’t matter. What matters is that I’ve been on plenty of cute dates and want to share my top five date ideas. Let’s dive in, shall we?
My Personal Top 5 Date Ideas:
Let’s take it old school and go to an arcade
Arcades are always fun, it brings out the child in us and it’s not as expensive as an amusement park (which is also a great date idea by the way hehe)
You can take them to:
- Dave ‘n Busters – you can watch sports, play games, drink, and grub on some wings and nachos!
- Round 1 – you can go bowling, karaoke, play in the arcade, or play pool!
- Pacific Park on Santa Monica Pier – you can watch the sunset, grab dinner on the pier, and play at the arcade or ride the rides they have there!
Color Me Mine or Paint With a Twist
Color Me Mine is so fun because you get to choose what kind of pottery shapes you’d like to paint and get creative with it. They also have an option to do at-home date kits that includes the pottery of your choice, painting colors, tools, and instructions. (This would be perfect if you decide to do a home-cooked dinner date. You could eat, paint, and then end the day with a movie.)
My original idea for a date was a Paint with a Twist class because it sounds like it would be a fun experience. But I thought more into it and wanted to go with Color Me Mine because I think the idea of painting pottery sounds more practical for me. This would still be a great idea though because who doesn’t love art and wine?
Plan a picnic
Picnics are so fun because you can either plan it yourself or make a date out of it by going to the store with them and putting together your picnic basket. It’s great because you don’t even have to spend that much money if you don’t want to either.
Just grab something to sit on (make sure your cloth is thick because grass can be damp), stuff to munch on, something to drink, and a card game/art supplies/a speaker for music.
- Ideas on what to have for your picnic basket:
- DIY Charcuterie Board: Most items you can buy at your local store (my boyfriend ended up buying all his supplies from Trader Joes as a one-stop shop)
- Actual food: Take out from you guys’ favorite place can be good if you don’t want to do the cheese and crackers stuff
- Chips: You can never go wrong with chips
- Fruit: I suggest buying a smaller platter or just cutting your own fruit. My friends and I bought this huge fruit tray once because we thought it would look cute in the pictures + it was cheaper. But we ended up throwing majority it out because we couldn’t finish before the mold got to it.
- *Extra Brownie Points* Chocolate Covered Strawberries: This will put your date over the top with this, need I say more? You guys can make it a whole thing of bring a chocolate warmer and fresh strawberries and dipping it together!
**If you want to look like you went all out, add a picnic to a day trip (look at the next date idea for more help)**
Plan a trip (Extra Brownie Points If You Do)
Okay, this does sound like a lot more work for you. But just hear me out, you can do a day trip. A staycation. A quick out-of-town trip. (It makes it look like you really took your time to plan this special day out.) And to help you do this, you can check out my other blog post: At Last, The Secret to San Diego’s Top Attractions.
You can really just take an hour or two driving to your destination, plan a couple of places to check out for the itinerary, and end the day with a nice dinner.
I definitely saved the best for last because boy oh boy, I love the Museum of Love. The Museum of Love is so great because it’s an interactive museum that changes its theme for different seasons.
Currently, they have a Couple’s Connection Adventure that runs from January 14 to September 25. This adventure will help you discover new insights about one another and have so many fun activities for you to try out.
You’d have to make reservations for this museum and ticket prices include the admission for 2 people! Click “Museum of Love” for more information!
