5 Unique Valentine's Day Date Ideas
Valentine’s Day is known for being the most cliché holiday of the year. From a box of chocolates that you can buy for 50% off on February 15, a fluffy stuffed bear that lives in your closet for the rest of its life, a fancy pre-fixed dinner with an above average price, to many other staples of the holiday, everywhere you turn it seems people are doing the same thing. That’s why you should change it up this year.
Make this Valentine day special for you and your significant other by doing something you’ll remember forever. Don’t forget that each date idea requires a cute and comfortable plus size outfit to make sure you look and feel your best. Below are five types of dates that can help you achieve this goal, or, at the very least, ignite your creativity.
Bar Hopping
One of the most tedious aspects of Valentine’s Day is rushing to book that perfectly dim-lit corner table at the fanciest restaurant in town, full of other romantics desperately trying to hear their partner talk over the volume of the busy dining room. Lighten up the mood a little bit! Try hopping from bar to bar while grabbing a glass of wine and some tapas (a Spanish term for a small plate of food, like gourmet snacks).
Love Doesn’t Have To Be So Serious
You’re out with your partner on Valentine’s Day for a reason: you like them a lot! Whether you’re just starting out a new relationship, married for more years than you have fingers and toes, or somewhere in between, always prioritize having fun with your partner and try to learn new things about them whenever you can.
If you go into the date with the perspective that it’s another special day with your special someone, you’re sure to have a better time and not sweat the small stuff. Bar hopping or wine tasting around your city gives you the perfect foundation to let loose and make some memories with the one you love.
People watching
Bars are filled with surprising things to see. Stake out a table with a good view of the room and play I-Spy with a Valentine’s Day twist. The first person to see each of these things buys the other a drink:
- Someone buying another person a drink at the bar
- A pack of women and a pack of men standing right next to each other but not mingling
- Two people lost in each other’s eyes
- A totally sequined top
- A lover’s quarrel
No stress, no mess
How often do you have to make a reservation to grab drinks at a bar? That’s right, hardly ever! The beauty of this Valentine’s day date is that there are no reservations needed to have a great time. We all know that anxiety stops romance right in its tracks. Planning to bar hop instead of sitting down at a restaurant removes one more potential stressor out of the equation.
Romantic Hike
Get away from the buzz of the city and set off the beaten path with your honey. Losing yourself among the trees and the stars can be one of the most romantic experiences, especially when you’re not ever actually lost. This Valentine’s day date idea takes you out of the whirlwind of commercialized love and plops you into the wild, enjoying the beauty of nature while basking in the beauty of your shared love.
In the forest
If it’s not too cold where you live, ask your partner on a romantic hike through the woods just before sunset. You’ll work up a sweat, get your adrenaline pumping, and be more than excited to fall into each other’s arms after trekking up the side of a mountain. If you time it right, you can set up a big blanket and snuggle while the sun goes down, painting the sky violet and magenta in honor of your special date.
Once the sun sets, get some logs together and build a bonfire to cozy up to. Warmed by the flames, you and your significant other can share the intimate moment. If you get hungry you can snack on America’s favorite campfire food; s’mores! Bring some chocolate covered strawberries and a bottle of wine to put a sweet Valentine’s bow on your rustic romance.
On the beach
If you’re lucky enough to spend Valentine’s Day on the beach, take advantage of it! The sea has always been portrayed as the temptress, the unrelenting seductress, the bringer of love and life and endless possibility. Channel that power and harness the energy of the ocean to enhance your Valentine’s day.
Take a long walk down the beach and end it the same way you would a hike through the forest: with a big blanket and a roaring fire. You should also make it a priority to catch the sun as it dips behind the lapping waves of the sea. There’s nothing quite as wistful, nostalgic, and forgiving as the sea, and nothing quite as reflective, either.
Through the park
If your closest green space is a park, you can turn a simple walk through the neighborhood into a moonlit stroll. Start with a nice dinner at home or pack your own picnic and head to the park. Often, live bands have special Valentine’s Day performances in public spaces for lovers to enjoy. Check with your town’s city hall to see if there’s any free live music on February 14th.
Throwback to Childhood
Get a little silly this Valentine’s Day and unlock your inner child. Remember when you would walk into class, dressed head to toe in pink and red, and everyone would pass around tiny cards with candy and sweet notes? Remember how pure that love was, how stress-free? Get a little sugar high with your significant other and do all the things you loved when you were a kid.
Build a fort
Soft blankets and squishy pillows make everyone happy. Build a big fort in the middle of your living room like you used to. It’s even better if you never got the chance to when you were little! Throw in some wine or cute cocktails to set the mood and collect every pillow, sheet, and blanket you have around the house. You can even pick up some string lights from the store and construct the pillow fort of your childhood fantasy.
Make sure the inside is big enough to comfortably lie down in with extra room to cuddle. Once you’ve built the fort, stock it with all of your favorite snacks from when you were a kid. Who says you have to eat a big steak and a baked potato on Valentine’s Day? Pick up all the foods your parents wouldn’t let you have when you were growing up, like:
- A big box of sugary cereal
- Gummy bears
- Cheesy chips
- Caramel and cheddar popcorn
- All the sodas
Get to know your partner
You’ve been invited to your first middle school party ever, and suddenly all your friends join up in a circle in the center of the living room. It’s time for truth or dare. What may have once sparked fear in your adolescent heart is now the key to exploring the depth of your loved one’s.
The rules of the game are simple. You ask your partner to choose between truth or dare. If they choose “truth” you have the opportunity to ask them any question you’d like, and they have to answer you truthfully. If they choose “dare” you get to dare them to do anything you can think of and they have to do it.
You can even put an adult spin on the childhood game by giving your partner an out: if they don’t want to do a dare or say a truth, they have to take a sip of their drink. Sometimes, not saying anything is the loudest response you could have hoped for.
Indoor Artistry
You don’t have to go out to share a special moment with your significant other. If you’d prefer to spend this Valentine’s Day indoors and avoid the chaos outside, or it’s frankly too cold to leave the sanctuary of your heated home, don’t worry. Romance is alive and well wherever there is someone to tend to it. Here are a few things you can do to turn your home into a sanctuary of love.
Painting
Express your inner Picasso and paint the night away with your partner. You can freeform paint or have a few guidelines, like only painting using red and white or painting how you feel about your loved one. It can be a mix of colors on a canvas, a natural scene, or a shared memory you’re fond of. Best of all, you can keep these pieces of art and hang them up around the house so you’re always reminded of the moment you shared.
Poetry
If you’re more into writing than you are painting, try writing each other poetry or prose to express yourself instead. You can play around with sonnets, one of Shakespeare’s most romantic literary forms, or choose a few of your favorite love poems by famous writers .
It’s always nice to hear how much you mean to someone, and often couples don’t communicate that enough. Write your musings on pretty paper so your sweetheart can keep it on their desk, or fold it up and pop it in their wallet to take with them wherever they go.
Foreign movie night
Snuggle up and watch a movie in Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, French, or Romanian… they’re called romance languages for a reason! Put the subtitles on and get lost in beautiful European accents and the sweeping countryside. Elevate your movie experience with a wine from the region of the language you’re watching the movie in and pick up some gourmet popcorn from the grocery store. It may be snowing outside, but that won’t stop you from drinking an Aperol spritz and feeling like you’re zipping through the Florentine hills in Italy on a Vespa with the love of your life.
Comedy Show
Get your giggle on this Valentine’s Day and blow off steam at your local comedy club. Be ready for some romance-themed jokes and playful ribbing about people who are young and in love. If that’s you, be warned. This unique date idea is perfect for newer couples who are still getting to know one another. You’ll get to find out a few essential qualities about your partner:
- Do they share a similar sense of humor?
- Do they have an infectiously cute laugh?
- Can they laugh at themselves?
You’ve heard the phrase, “Laughter is the best medicine.” Instead of spending the days leading up to V-Day panicking over what to wear, how to do your hair and makeup, and how you’re going to hobble around in your special occasion heels for three hours, head to a stand-up comedy act and laugh the stress away.
The best part about this date is that it doesn’t have to be the one and only thing you do this Valentine’s Day. Couple this idea with a nice dinner before or a walk around the city after and stretch your time with your loved one as far as you can. Start with something overtly romantic and end with the comedy store. Or vice versa. No matter what you decide to do, a comedy show is going to serve as a fantastic bridge for the night.
Love is in the Air
These Valentine’s Day date ideas are perfect for your significant other, your best friend, or whoever else lights up your life. Experience something new and unique this February 14th and take risks that you won’t soon forget. No matter what you do this Valentine’s Day, make sure you’re sharing it with the person or people you love.
